Courtesy of Jay Bennett
With more than 50 vendors present each Saturday throughout the summer, the Westerville Farmers Market has something for everyone from artisan bread to gourmet coffee blends.
The market started in 2018 in response to residents’ requests for fresh, local food. Lynn Aventino, director of Uptown Westerville, says it began with 36 vendors and has grown 15 percent each year since. That expansion led the market to move in 2020 from its original location at Otterbein University to its current space behind Westerville City Hall to make space for more vendors, entertainment and guests.
With that expansion, the market has focused on bringing in a range of items. You won’t find 10 vendors competing for the sell the same products.
“We try to offer a unique and quality selection of products and to not oversaturate offerings in any one product,” Aventino says.
The vendors come from across central Ohio, from Canal Winchester to Dublin.
For Erik Weitz, who co-owns Megan Lee Designs with his wife, Megan, the market is hyper local. In fact, it’s just a five-minute walk from their house down State Street.
Weitz says the market has provided his business with an opportunity to meet and interact with members of the Westerville community since Megan Lee Designs became a vendor in 2019.
“I’m excited to get back out there and enjoy the interactions I have with everybody,” he says. “(The market) is always a really fun event and it feels good to have that sense of community.”
Megan Lee Designs offers T-shirts for kids and adults, tote bags, greeting cards and stickers with quirky and unique designs handcrafted by Megan.
Bake a Difference, another Westerville-based business, has been offering guests gourmet cupcakes and brownies since before the market’s relocation.
Owner and head baker Dean Vickers says, throughout its three years at the market, Bake a difference has developed a dedicated group of followers he looks forward to seeing each week.
“(The market) is a great opportunity to showcase some of our existing products as well as get feedback from people on potential new items,” Vickers says.
Consistent with its name, Bake a Difference donates 5 percent of its sales to a local nonprofit each month. That, too, becomes a talking point.
“We enjoy asking our repeat customers, ‘What’s new this week?’ as we change what we sell and what charity we donate to,” Vickers says.
Bake a Difference’s philanthropy ties into the market’s larger culture. The market donates extra food products to the Promise House, Otterbein’s student food pantry. Aventino says donations total about 500 pounds of food each season.
While some vendors use the market to meet people within their community, others branch out in search of new communities to share their products with.
Covey Rise Farms, located in Radnor, 45 minutes northwest of Westerville, brings eggs, honey and a range of pastured meats to the market. It is also one of the market’s founding vendors, as it’s been attending since the inaugural market in 2018.
Charlie Payne, co-owner with his wife Kerissa, says they started attending early in their farming career and have grown alongside the market.
“It’s exciting to return and see a lot of our customers in person,” Payne says. “The market has been really supportive of what we do and we’re looking forward to seeing them grow even more this year.”
With vendors returning to the market year after year, many forge valuable relationships not only with customers, but with other vendors as well.
Jay Bennett, owner of DrankTank, a mobile beverage vendor working out of a 1965 Cushman Truckster, says the market provides a quaint, familial atmosphere to its guests, vendors and staff.
“I’ve really connected with some other vendors there,” he says.
Bennett accredits the market’s growth to the variety of tastes and interests it boasts.
“(The market) isn’t just a one stop shop and you’re out,” he says. “It’s a place to spend the morning. You can come and get a drink, there’s music, entertainment, booths with rotating art.”
In addition to food, the market offers professional knife sharpening, pre-market yoga or fitness classes, healthy nutrition and cooking demos and kids crafts by the Arts Council of Westerville.
The 2022 Farmers Market runs from 9 a.m.-noon every Saturday from May 21-Oct. 8. It’s held behind Westerville City Hall at 21 S. State St.
For more information and a complete list of vendors and offerings, visit www.uptownwestervilleinc.com.
Megan Roth is a senior editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at mroth@cityscenemediagroup.com.
