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An opportunity for local business start-ups at NFM

Jessica Dean
Posted 6/17/23

Some people grow up with the passion and need to feed others with great food and amazing homemade crafts. At the Nederland Farmers Market (NFM), you’ll meet the makers, farmers, and craftsmen

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An opportunity for local business start-ups at NFM

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Some people grow up with the passion and need to feed others with great food and amazing homemade crafts. At the Nederland Farmers Market (NFM), you’ll meet the makers, farmers, and craftsmen of a small mountain community that carry this distinct interest in their business plan and in their hearts.

Offering to the public a piece of their heart and soul with endless hours spent to produce something beautiful is not an easy task for small start-ups in Nederland. As most locals know, opening up a brick and mortar in this tiny town can be quite challenging. For the past seven years NFM has been able to provide an alternative solution for these creative entrepreneurs, now seen today at the Sunday bi-weekly market.

Stepping into the market, there seems to be more than a dozen Ned faces selling their variously delicious handcrafted goods to the public. Come rain or shine, NFM vendors continue to represent their hard work and creations with a handful of passion.

Just a short conversation with business owner Laraina of Mountain Girl Pickles, and you will step into the heart of the pickle business and why she inherently enjoys making her family’s fourthgeneration Louisiana recipes.

A resident now for over 21 years, Laraina has continued her family tradition, beginning pickling for the community around 2012. Now featured in at least nine farmers markets and 17 different stores across Colorado, with the motto “Everything is better pickled,” there’s no doubt that this mountain girl loves what she does.

Taking a further stroll through the beautiful display of vending booths on 2nd Street, it’s easy to witness the chemistry of how the market resonates with so many happy shoppers. They are choosing to spend their dollars locally rather than from large distribution centers. Current trends reveal that no matter what you spend your money on, there is no doubt that shopping locally literally takes the money away from corporate competition and the thousands of miles of fuel the products take to reach our grocery shelves.

Whether it’s pickles, fresh produce, artistic creations, local honey, grass-fed beef, signature crafted pottery or tasty treats that you’re searching for, NFM continues to meet these desires along with the town’s demand for more nutritious and locally made products.

With the Nederland Farmers Market in full bloom this summer, now is the time to mark those dates down and help support the future of local businesses. Maintaining these small business profiles offers an opportunity for local entrepreneurs to try out their new business concepts while continuing to help build the foundation for a strong and self-sustainable community. Taking the middleman away from the equation is how the town seems to respond best to the changing times and ever-present monopoly of commercialism that can feel absolutely suffocating.

So, if you’re thinking about trying out a new business idea, maybe vending at NFM is the next step? You just might find yourself fulfilling that creative passion while offering up a local alternative to the public.

Contact Market Manager Kate Yzquierdo with all vending-related questions. Contact Yzquierdo at vending@nederlandfarmersmarket.org or call 719-648-5197. Check out the website http://www.nederlandfarmersmarket.org and like them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NederlandFarmersMarket/.