By John Garcia Jr.
August 4, 2009
SYRACUSE, NY- The Syracuse Farmer’s Market is open again for business today and every Tuesday. The weather and the economy have slowed down sales this summer. The two forces have established certain trends from the buyer and the vendor this year. (*Photo courtesy of Syracuse.com)
The weather has made customers stay indoors because of the rain. They would rather wait until the next Tuesday to get their fresh fruits and vegetables. Some would only come for a short time to get something specific and leave when the skies were cloudy or even raining a little.
Vendors have felt the wrath of the weather trends and feelings on how to deal with it are mixed. Kathy Hafner (HAY-fner), of Liverpool, has been selling produce at the market for the last five years. Hafner shows up rain or shine and deals with the consequences.
“We lost two tents so far and things have blown over…but it’s been good all in all,” said Hafner.
Other vendors elect not to deal with rainy conditions. Ruth Beasley, of Cicero, sells maple syrup from Tioga (tie-OH-gah) county. Beasley smirked as she re-iterated the fact that when it rains she is a no-show.
“When it’s a windy day it kind of reaks havoc on my stuff,” said Beasley.
Sales continue to drop off because of the ailing economy as well. Vendors have relied on their regulars to continue buying. The trends have also forced vendors to drop prices. Nasreen (nuh-SREEN) Din has been selling jewelry at the market for years. When regulars don’t bring in enough, the prices drop up to 50 percent on everything to push the sale.
“People are feeling the pinch,” Din said.
The spirit of the vendors remains high even with the weather and economic trends. Din said she is praying for the best. Hafner laughed as she said she’s hoping for the best.
The Syracuse Farmer’s Market is downtown and will continue every Tuesday in the summer, rain or shine.
Kathy Hafner’s quote:
Ruth Beasely’s quote:
Nasreen Din’s quote:
No comments:
Post a Comment