Episode Details

The crew recently sat down with organizers (Kyle Demeter and Ben Leas) to discuss a new model for market farms here in town establishing a vendor-owned, nonprofit putting local producers and businesses in charge of their own economic ecosystem.

Frustrated by high vendor costs in regional markets, they organized a cooperative-style market that lets every participating vendor hold a voting share in decision-making.

Here’s part of the gameplan - It’s a Tuesday evening market!

Their overall model is built on themes we love like local ownership and recurring, year-round activity. The group is operating with temporary city permits, holding outdoor markets near the Early Television Museum and planning to move indoors to the Makoy Center for winter. Their goal: to make Hilliard a year-round market destination.

They argue that farmers markets should act as incubators for small food ventures, giving new producers a chance to test products, build consistency, and connect with local businesses. They see Hilliard’s rural heritage and growing downtown as an opportunity to bridge traditional farming and modern entrepreneurship without outside operators taking a cut from vendors.

Ben probably says it best himself:

It’s basically every food producer that I’ve ever known that started with a new product basically tests the market through farmer’s markets. And obviously it gives you a good idea of whether or not your product is even sellable.

Some people may say, my God, it’s awesome.

Some people may say it’s terrible.

Some people, you know, they do one season and they kind of disappear.

So we’ve been able to really target exactly what the audience is and being able to build a business on the farmer’s market.

The farmer’s market is basically the incubator for every great idea in the food industry.

And it’s important for a farmers market to appreciate their vendors because they put a lot of time and effort into building a craft and they make it very, very good.

A lot of people come week after week just to get that little taste again. So it creates almost like a micro economy within the economy of the city. And it’s important to have a good market because I think it’s just a showcase of what the city can do.

— Ben Leas (Waffle Hub founder)

Current Participating Vendors

Each link brings you into a world of stories, growth and the hard work it takes to make something in America. Take a look - more folks are joining all the time.

Montezuma Hot Sauce

Paisano Peppers

Hinton Apiaries

Third & Spoon Cookie Dough

Stay Wells Bakery

Blue Star Farms

Elfrink Farms

Demeter Family Farms (Kyle)

Penguin Pebbles

Snyder Flower Farm

Pawson Dog Treats

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