If your summer garden is teeming with deliciously homegrown fruits and vegetables, more than your family can eat or preserve; consider a mobile roadside produce stand. This can help you make a little bit of extra money while offering your neighbors farm fresh and quality food ingredients.
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Why is mobility necessary in a produce stand?
For us where we live, mobility is essential.
We get sudden thunderstorms with wind gusts that the weather apps don’t predict well. So I need to be able to move the produce stand to safety quickly.
Alternatively, we plan to get our produce stand, the Farm Shelf, anchored using mobile home anchors so that in the event of a sudden storm, predicted or not, I can grab off the items needing safety and not worry with the cart itself.
Johnson Home NC
Our design does have spacing between the shiplap walls to allow air flow on windier days.
What if you are on a low traffic road?
I live on one of those!
Maybe a dozen or so cars ride by in a day and oftentimes it’s the same driver coming back by later.
Because right now our Farm Shelf is not a business but rather, a side hustle, we aren’t looking for a ton of traffic. Just a way to share our overabundant garden goodies with our neighbors and community who like farm fresh foods but do not or cannot grow their own.
If the option is available to you:
- ask a neighbor on a busier road if you can set up your mobile produce stand on their property
- check with your local ordinances to see if you can set up 1-2 days a week somewhere in town
These options could allow more traffic simply due to better visibility.
How to diversify offerings when the garden isn’t producing much?
Do you have a crafting hobby? Crocheting, soap making, jewelry, etc?
Offer those goodies on your roadside produce stand.
Do you have roses in bloom or other flowers?
Use upcycled glass jars to make quick bouquets to sell for super affordable prices.
Can you make homemade lemonade?
Offer a serve yourself lemonade stand. Cups, lemonade pitcher, and a cooler of ice. Display a self-serve sign.
If you are in a state that has a cottage food law and you can offer baked goods, people love homemade cookies, breads, cupcakes, etc.
Do you have extra seedlings leftover after planting your garden?
Offer those to your neighbors for their gardens.
How can I market my roadside produce stand?
This will depend on your comfort level, how close you are to the road, if you want strangers in your driveway, etc.
Johnson Home NC
Mobile Produce Stand Marketing Options:
- use social media to share your offerings
- your own social media accounts or make one specifically for the mobile produce stand
- post flyers at the local post office and other businesses
- put a sign by the nearest high traffic road to direct traffic your way
- put signs in your yard (“open” flags or a custom feather flag grabs attention of passersby)
- if your local newspaper has a free section of community event listings
- start a weekly email newsletter
Forms of payment
Having options for payment is helpful.
Not everyone carries cash these days so if you can open a electronic form of payment such as Venmo, Paypal, Cash App, Zelle, or Apple Pay; you’ll find shoppers are willing to purchase more at their visit.
Is manning the mobile produce stand important?
This will depend on your comfort level.
If you are planning on a 1-2 days a week set up in a heavy traffic place, it may be a strong consideration to be there for those “open hours” to accept customers yourself.
If you are planning to have the mobile produce stand on your property at the road or driveway, then considering an honor system produce stand may be your best bet.
Johnson Home NC
What is an honor system produce stand?
This is where you allow customers to serve themselves at your mobile produce stand.
You are not present to help.
This will require trust on your part.
Will there be theft? It’s very possible.
Taking down or closing up/blocking off your mobile produce stand at dusk each day may help prevent theft.
Johnson Home NC
How to deal with mobile produce stand theft?
Honestly, there’s not much you can do.
If you have cameras, you can call your sheriff’s department to report the theft.
I have not experienced this and pray I don’t but if I should experience it then I would have to take it to the Lord. Maybe that person needed the produce and couldn’t pay for it. Maybe that person truly needs your prayers.
Best practices for an honor produce stand
- take down, move, block off produce stand at the end of the day
- post open hours at the stand and perhaps on a yard sign as well
- if you have cameras, post a sign at the produce stand stating so
- when you see a car pull up, make it a point to be visible outside, piddling in the garden or yard
- speak and/or wave at customers
- chalkboard signs or paint to create signs and chalkboard markers are helpful tools
Other gardening ideas for you
The Back to Eden garden method
Becoming an Accidental Flower Farmer
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