Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jennifer McColm, Founder of California Certified Farmers Markets, located in Calabasas, CA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Why are so many unique artisans flocking to sell what they grow or make at the California Certified Farmers Markets? Because I, Jennifer McColm, and my colleagues aren’t just selling organic produce and food. We're selling a healthy, wholesome lifestyle and the pursuit of the American Dream, rain or shine. Customers unite under the same worldview method, which describes both our vendors and our vendor's customers. Why? Because they have similar motivations, they share the same world views, values, and beliefs. Generally speaking - they both care about the environment and community, they are consciously growing and evolving, and all want healthy, locally sourced foods and crafts.
Tell us about yourself
When I was a little girl, I tended my own garden. Surprisingly, between my mom and dad, my dad was the extraordinary cook! His meals started with his approach to ingredients. I would pick over carrots, inspect baby potatoes for color and ripeness, smell the basil for freshness and pull and prod everything within reach in my little garden boxes below the deck in the backyard of our family home in Tarzana, California. On our holidays abroad, we were sure to schedule trips to the farmers markets in the towns we stayed. There I began to get my vision.
It wasn’t until many years later, as a young adult in Old Town Calabasas, picking out the exact chocolate croissant I wanted at a small, weekly, roadside-type farmers market, I realized where I felt most at home. Inevitably, the smells, sounds, and textures of the open-air market had vanished in me - somewhere between my little backyard garden and Ralph’s. My daily growing habit, with its incredible sense of discovery and twinkle of the hard-earned leek, had given way to the tedium of convenience and routine. And then there is California Certified Farmers Markets. This incredible 24-farmers market-disrupter has cultivated a food experience unlike almost anything else in its industry today.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Knowing I am bringing health back to our communities with an abundance of fresh, locally sourced food. I find comfort in that, and it feels extraordinary that my local communities have these markets readily available to them. And, of course, a huge accomplishment was being able to keep most of my markets open during the horrific pandemic. We worked tediously & tirelessly to keep everything up and running so healthy food would still be available to our customers.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Of course, as a business owner, there will always be many trials and tribulations. I think having a great attitude when issues arise is very important. Not many people know how farmers markets operate, but you're dealing with city officials, licensing and permits, employees, vendors, customers, the Health Department, etc. It can be a lot at times, but I have hired the best colleagues to assist with all the fine details of operating the best farmers markets in Southern California. I am very grateful.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
My top three tips are to be tenacious with your passion in life, have a great support system as things will be difficult when you're first starting out, and don't sweat the small things, issues and problems will arise, but you learn to get back up and keep going.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://ccfm.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CCFMInc
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CCFMInc/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CCFMInc
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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