Digging in at the Daniel Island Afternoon Farmers Market
Close to 30 vendors lined up to sell their wares at the debut of the new and improved Afternoon Daniel Island Farmers Market on April 11. Both the picture perfect day – and new location at Guggenheim Terrace – provided an atmosphere that was ripe with opportunity.
“I like it!” exclaimed vendor Adam Soffera of A-dam Good Dry Rub. “It’s a nice area…We do a lot of markets around the tri-county area. And people are always looking for something like this.”
Around the corner from Soffera’s booth was Shade Tree Nursery, run by Jim Todd.
“We’re absolutely excited to be here,” exclaimed Todd, who currently operates his business out of two greenhouses. “Especially since this is the first time (for this event). Charleston has a lot of markets and as they get established they all do well. All have their own clientele. It’s just fun!”
Photographer Joanna Biondolillo of Image Merchants also took part in the debut event and hopes to be a regular vendor.
“I am so excited to be here,” she said. “I truly am. The people are lovely and it gives you a chance to showcase your work to new audiences.”
Also joining in was the Lowcountry Street Grocery (LSG) bus, which also takes part in the new rotating Morning Farmers Market on Daniel Island.
“It’s been great,” said LSG’s Lindsey Barrow. “We’ve always found a lot of great support out here on DI. And that’s so important on so many levels. We are essentially a sliding scale grocery on wheels. At the end of the day, we’re trying to sustainably provide access and food security to low income, low access neighbors in Charleston…This is a very good start to a great relationship!”
Afternoon Farmers Market Manager Kyle Morton was thrilled with the early success of the first event.
“So far, so good!” he said, a couple of hours after the market kicked off. “The island didn’t have one last year, so a lot of people are glad to see that it’s back.”
Morton encouraged the community to come out and support the pet-friendly and family-friendly event moving forward.
“Come!” he said. “Even if you don’t buy anything, just come and walk around. The vendors can see that people are here…Just coming and supporting with moral support is a huge thing to us.”
In addition to a wide variety of vendors (expect 20 to 25 each week), the Afternoon Farmers Market will feature kids’ activities and musical entertainment. Check the event’s Facebook page for details.
“We’d love to establish enough of a clientele base where we would take this longer than just 12 weeks out of the year,” added Morton. “…We would love to turn this into something bigger and better!”