Tulsa Farmers’ Market is officially in the spring season.
Tulsa Farmers’ Market, located in Kendall Whittier, held its opening day market last Saturday to welcome its 27th Spring season. This was the largest opening market, with 85 local businesses selling crafts and produce.
For the past few months, the Tulsa Farmers’ Market has been working with their winter schedule, where a smaller market has been held every other week. Although the winter season is filled with many vendors still giving customers the option to buy local produce, it is great to see all vendors back and fully stocked with more options.
The Tulsa Farmers’ Market is a 15-minute walk from campus, providing students with a great opportunity to buy local produce and arts and benefitting vendors with more customers nearby. Customers can find so many different vendors selling various items, making every vendor unique in their own way. From hand-painted art to homemade soaps and beautiful flower bouquets, there are so many more reasons to visit the market than just produce.
During the busy market, I spoke with two local businesses and learned more about the opportunities farmer’s markets can offer both businesses and customers.
Hungry Duck Farms, owned by Madden Humphrey, is a local farm business that sells a variety of vegetables at the Farmers’ Market. The second business I spoke to was a small art business owned by Angie Wilson. Danke’s Doxies is an adorable art business dedicated to art surrounding weenie dogs.
How did you start your business, and what brought you to the farmers’ market?
Madden Humphry: I started running my own farm about seven years ago and the farmers’ market is the perfect place to go if you’re starting a small farm business. During my first year, this is the first place that I sold and now I am here every year.
Angie Wilson: My husband grew up with weenie dogs and I’m just obsessed with them now. I started drawing and it turned into watercolor, then I started selling here and there. I started at the second Sunday Arts and Eats and I’ve done that for a couple of years. Then I decided to merge into this Saturday market.
Why do you think it’s important to have this farmers’ market for smaller companies?
Madden Humphry: You can sell the things you grow directly to customers and directly to the community, and the farmers’ markets organization has a lot. This is where everyone in town comes to find local foods. So this is a good way to meet chefs and all the customers and caterers and different people I sell to.
Angie Wilson: Aside from the produce aspect of it, I’m really grateful that they’re allowing artists to come in as well. It’s important because we don’t have a whole lot of venues so this is just another opportunity for us.
Do you sell your art/produce outside of farmers’ markets?
Madden Humphry: I do. I sell to different food programs and wholesalers and some chefs and restaurants.
Angie Wilson: I do, I have a dedicated booth at an artist co-op over by the church music studio on studio row. It’s called Hummingbird Fine Craft. We have a little of everything in there.
Hungry Duck Farms and Danke’s Doxies can be found at the Tulsa Farmers’ Market every Saturday from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m., next to the Kendall Whittier Library.