Saturday Morning Market - St. Petersburg, FL

Recently on a trip to St. Petersburg, Florida I was told about a greenmarket that was held in the town center every Saturday during the winter months. So off I went to check it out as I love fresh food and the camaraderie of farmers’ markets I paid it a visit. My first impression was::
- There were few produce vendors and even less local produce vendors
- It was not a farmers’ market
- It was very crowded, lively and fun
- There were tons of dogs of every description and size with their owners




Now this is my sort of market.

I completely forgot that I really came to buy food.

I walked around the market and came upon the market manager’s booth and introduced myself to Mark Johnson, who turned out to be one of the founders of the market. He spent some time with describing the goal of the market and how it came into being.


The market is not a farmers’ market per se. Its actual name is the Saturday Morning Market which is aptly named. Mark told me that from the beginning they knew they wanted the market to speak to the community, a place where people would feel connected and where creativity and friendships could be fostered.

The market opened in November 2002 with 10 vendors and by the end of their first season they had 45 vendors. They are able to keep the vendor fees low because there is only one paid employee while the three founders work for free; a 10x10 foot space costs $35 for the day. This year they had over 150 vendors for a 110 space market and so they rotate.

Produce and plant vendors account for 19% while the rest of the spaces are taken up by arts and crafts, prepared foods, value-added food vendors, and community organizations. In 2004, the market established a community kitchen to enable fledging vendors to meet health code requirements by cooking in a certified kitchen. All the products have to be grown, cooked or made by the vendor with the exception of environmental products or organizations such as Its Our Nature which sells organic products, the Sierra Club and the Pyrenees Rescue club, to name just a few. The craft vendors are all juried before they are accepted into the market.

Local farmers were very few even though they can try out the market for four Saturday’s at no charge, i.e. no risk to them. Small farmers are few in Florida but they do exist. Mark said that they do not understand the value of direct retail marketing. Also, they are reluctant to change their growing patterns and seem content to sell through the wholesalers in Tampa even though they could make more money at the market. Mark told me that he is trying to sell the concept of farmers’ markets to the farmers but it is difficult. He is trying to advertise in the Hillsborough County Agriculture Extension Agency’s newsletter.

I spoke to Linda from D.G. Diehl Farms

who was helping out her son; the owner of the farm. She told me that they have been selling their blueberries at the market since late 2005. They always sell everything they bring to the market. I asked Linda if her customers are price sensitive and she said “Yes, I have customers who will tell me that they can buy two cartons of blueberries from Argentina for $5 against her $4 for one carton.” Linda said that she always told them that “her blueberries are fuller, the carton is fuller, and they were picked yesterday, so that there was no comparison.”

Linda told me that they were not dependent on the market solely for their income because contracts with the cruise lines and the Ritz Carlton hotels. Their farm is in Ruskin, Florida where they own 100 acres of land.

The market has no problem from the shop vendors as the food related vendors have a stall at the Saturday market also.

When I visited the market it was extremely busy. People came to browse or buy and then stay awhile to sit and eat some food from the many food vendors and listen to music. One family – Leslie and Pamela Best and their two children Bethia and Bryoe relocated from Long Island, NY in June 2007 to Tampa and they visited the market every Saturday. Leslie said “we come to buy flowers, and food, and stuff for our new home, and then we buy the turkey legs from Mr. I Got em and sit here and listen to the music.”





The market operates from October through May from 9:00 – 2:00 pm every Saturday.