Vendors outnumbered customers during much of the Park Place Farmers Market's first day Jan. 12. But that was to be expected, say the organizers and vendors.
Typically, they said, it takes anywhere from a few months to two years for a farmers market to draw a regular crowd capable of sustaining the vendors' time and effort.
The thin crowd in the courtyard entrance on the south side of Park Place had nothing to do with what would seem an odd match - mall shoppers and farmers, according to Jeanette Gulledge.
She said it's not an odd match, at least not any more. Gulledge, of General Growth Properties Inc., the owners of Park Place, Tucson Mall and a chain of other malls from Hawaii to New York, said farmers markets in malls are a growing trend nationwide.
Malls have a built-in crowd, an established marketing system, restrooms and "most of all, parking," Gulledge said. She said General Growth alone has farmers markets at 18 of its malls.
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It's a big enough trend that arranging outdoor events at the company's malls - mainly farmers markets, but also Christmas tree lots and other themed events - is a full-time job for Gulledge. She travels around the country.
She said the slow-food and organic-food movements spurred the growth of farmers markets, and that most were in urban areas. As they grew, they encountered problems with space for expansion, traffic congestion and lack of parking.
"Farmers market organizers came to us and said, 'Can we set up farmers markets at your mall?' It was a perfect match: parking, restrooms, and typically at times of day when we're not busiest."
She said evening markets, with more emphasis on entertainment than daytime markets offer, are another trend.
Some, such as the 10-year-old Wednesday night farmers market at General Growth's Northridge, Calif., mall have turned into major scenes. Gulledge said that market routinely draws 3,000 to 5,000 people.
The Park Place market may shift hours in the summer, either earlier or later to beat the heat, organizers say. But so far, there's no talk of an evening event here.
Ed Dubis, the Park Place market's organizer, runs other local farmers markets, too, including the Friday market at Broadway Village and the Saturday St. Philip's Plaza market.
Jack Lemons, of Super Natural Organics, was particularly optimistic about Park Place. "I'm excited about this one. There's a certain clientele that frequents farmers markets, but having it at the mall will expose us to a much larger segment of the population," Lemons said.
He said the new market is also full of potential because it is on Tucson's east side, an underserved area for farmers markets.
Singer Joe Bourne's velvet crooning seemed a bit out of place for a farmers market. These events generally lean toward bluegrass and folk, and the occasional acoustic blues guitarist or autoharp strummer. Bourne strolled around with a wireless microphone, singing to a mellow, invisible band backing-track over a small sound system.
The occasional mall shopper walked by, surprised by Bourne and the vendors.
Gulledge said the mall charges the operator a fee to use the space. The operator, in this case Dubis, charges the vendors for booth space. Nobody wanted to talk fees.
"I don't know exactly, $25 or so," said Bruce "Bruno" Nogar, a distributor for John Spenger Foods, selling barrel-aged balsamic vinegars, infused oils, salsas and hot sauces. Nogar said he and his partner had already covered their Bistro Blends of Napa Valley booth's fee for the day.
Corrien Ledbetter may have been exactly the kind of customer Lemons had in mind when he spoke optimistically of a new clientele. With an armload of products she hadn't intended to buy - a Big Skye cherry pie and loaf of bread and two bags of tea - Ledbetter, a night-shift pharmacist, said she might be back. "I saw the sign when I was driving by. I'm not a farmers market regular," she said.
On her way back to her car, she was stopping by Bistro Blends for a bottle of Very Berry Strawberry Vinegar.
Dubis said the main draw is that it's seen as "a way to be more healthy and eat better. It's a throwback to the days when people knew their butcher, dairy person, grocer; this puts a face to their food," Dubis said.
Whether in a downtown parking lot or a suburban shopping mall, he said, "it's much like the old days, where if you give them something they like, they'll come back the next week."
If you go
What: Park Place Farmers Market.
When: 1 to 6 p.m. Tuesdays.
Where: South Courtyard of Park Place Mall (near the Bamboo Club Restaurant), 5870 E. Broadway Blvd.
This article also was published Jan. 13 in the Star. Contact reporter Dan Sorenson at dsorenson@azstarnet.com or 573-4185.
