EDIBLE ENDEAVORS: The scoop on FarmersMarket.com

Fresh fi xins all year long The Farmers Market Goes Online

BY CHARITY SINGLETON CRAIG | PHOTOGRAPHY BY CAROLE TOPLIAN

Ever forced yourself out of bed for a Saturday morning trip to the farmers market, wishing instead there was a way to shop for quality local products from home? Well, wish no more, my fellow Hoosiers. Nick Carter and his team at FarmersMarket.com have made it possible through their online platform and mobile app. Finishing their fi rst year of business in January, the small tech company is connecting more local farmers and artisans with central Indiana consumers.

How it works

Local farmers and artisans sign up to sell their products—things like eggs, meat, bread, vegetables, soaps and lotions and more—with FarmersMarket.com’s custom software, setting prices and maintaining inventory themselves. Th en customers visit the site (either online or through a mobile app) and place and pay for their orders. Th ere’s no membership or minimum order required. Th e only limit is the delivery range: Customers can pay $5.95 for delivery to their home or offi ce, or choose from approximately 30 free delivery locations, all within a 30-mile radius of Indianapolis.

Weekly ordering closes at midnight on Tuesdays, when FarmersMarket.com notifi es vendors of their orders. Farmers and artisans then show up at the FarmersMarket.com warehouse Th ursday morning with their wares, dropping specifi ed products into customer bins that line the shelves. By 10 a.m. the bins are fi lled and contracted delivery drivers take them to the selected locations, usually by 1 p.m. that same afternoon.

Farmers’ Choice

Why do vendors sell on FarmersMarket.com? Carter said farmers markets remain somewhat exclusive and are often hard to get into, especially for new farmers and artisans. FarmersMarket.com’s online system, on the other hand, can handle unlimited vendors and items. “Th e vendors are the most important part of this business,” Carter said.

Some farmers choose to participate in both. Mike Hoopengardner from Caprini Creamery in Spiceland said selling through FarmersMarket.com exposes him to a larger customer base. “It expands your market beyond just Broad Ripple,” said Hoopengardner, who sells Caprini’s locally produced goat cheeses at both the summer and winter Broad Ripple Farmers

Markets.

Customer loyalty

Carter said one unexpected hurdle in their fi rst year of business was helping customers overcome their reluctance to buy food online due to apprehension as to what they are really buying. Fortunately, word-ofmouth recommendations help, and Carter encourages vendors to include as many product photos as possible on the website, along with thorough descriptions. Once people try FarmersMarket.com, they usually move beyond those initial hesitations, Carter said, adding that loyalty is huge. FarmersMarket.com also guarantees everything, off ers refunds when requested and removes vendors who have too many customer complaints.

According to Carter, another challenge they face is customers’ lack of forethought and planning. Carter said, “but our competition is convenience … we’re competing against people’s inability to menu plan, to know what they’re going to want to eat next Tuesday.”

Opportunities for growth

FarmersMarket.com currently off ers only Th ursday delivery, but according to Carter that’s an opportunity for growth. Th eir goal is to grow from the 100 customers currently receiving once-a-week delivery to 1,000 customers spread across three to fi ve delivery days per week. Once they max out the Indianapolis location, they can then expand into other cities.

More immediately, FarmersMarket.com will be expanding partnerships with large corporations to become delivery locations for employees, as well as working to intentionally add vendors, which always adds customers through a network eff ect.

At its core, the FarmersMarket.com mission is about helping local farmers. “Creating this market is creating opportunities for farms to revive,” he said.