My First Farmers Market Stall as a Home Baker 👩🏻🌾🥕
Last Saturday I had my first stall at the Farmers Market 😊
I wanted to share my experience as a first-time vendor at a local farmers market and what it’s like starting a small home baking business with a cottage license.
For some reason, it wasn’t something I’d ever really pictured myself doing, but looking back now it actually makes perfect sense. I’ve been baking for years, and so many of my jobs have revolved around food and customer service. My first official job was working at the snack shack at the baseball fields, and the morning at the Farmers Market brought a lot of that back. I even had a bit of déjà vu greeting people the way I used to at the golf course club job I just left.
The difference this time was simple: I was smiling and waving good morning to people who were coming for my food.
It made me feel proud of myself, but not overly emotional since this wasn’t some lifelong dream I’d had forever lol.
I started my sourdough journey in December 2025, and since then I’ve been making sweet and savory loaves every week for friends and family. It’s kind of crazy to think that was only five months ago because I’ve done so well and learned so much in such a short amount of time.
A friend who’s sold his farm’s goods around town for years recommended the Farmers Market to me about a month ago, but at the time I brushed it off. Most of the breads I was making included cheese, which required a commercial kitchen and inspections, and I already knew I didn’t want to go back to the commercial kitchen I’d rented before. It was slightly dirty and a little uncomfortable at night.
Then about two weeks ago the idea came back.
I’d gotten tired of working Sundays at the golf course (my sixth workday every week) and I was starting to feel burnt out. I wanted to focus more on my bread, but realistically I knew I didn’t have endless energy to pour into it. Around six loaves a week was about my limit at the time, but between that, my office job, and the golf course, I was making just enough to cover my bills and still support my hobbies and ideas.
As I looked for ways to replace the income I’d lose from leaving the golf course, I went on the Farmers Market website and saw that the first market of the season was happening that Saturday. I also realized I only needed a cottage license, a food handler’s certification, an application, and $10 for the booth fee.
That meant I couldn’t sell my cheese loaves anymore since cottage licenses don’t allow perishable ingredients like dairy or meat, but I wasn’t as attached to that part of the menu as I thought I’d be.
A cottage license lets you legally bake from home as long as you follow a few rules: you sell directly to customers, avoid perishable ingredients, and label everything with ingredients, allergens, your business info, and a note that the food wasn’t inspected by the health department.
Since I’d already done commercial baked goods before, the process felt less intimidating. I live in a smaller town and had already met the health inspector before, so I reached out and he was able to meet with me the next day and approve everything.
I submitted my forms to the Farmers Market and waited to hear back. The response said there was a waitlist, but they’d reach out after the first market if space opened up.
I was a little disappointed, but I’d only fully committed to the idea a couple of days earlier and was still scheduled to work that Sunday at the golf course anyway. I responded, thanked them, and decided to still show up in person with my printed application just in case.
So that Saturday morning, my aunty and I went early. There were empty booths, we found the manager, handed over my paperwork, and after talking for a bit she told me I’d have a spot for the following Saturday.
I was so happy that everything ended up working out; the next day I put in my notice at the golf course! The pressure was on - I’d commited.
Over the following week I figured out how to scale up my baking and ended up preparing 36 large loaves and 48 mini loaves. The mini loaves were completely new, and I wasn’t sure if anyone would care about them, but they ended up being one of the most popular items of the morning.
There were definitely stressful moments leading up to it. Sticky dough problems, not enough time for test batches, and I even missed my alarm the morning of the market, but somehow it all still came together.
The morning itself started off brisk and cool and slowly warmed up. I used baskets and curtains from around my house for the booth setup and displayed everything in a wooden frame with the names and prices. Nothing was overly polished, but it felt warm and homey, and people seemed to respond to that.
At first, people would glance at the booth and keep walking. But once I started genuinely saying good morning or hello, more people started stopping. I just tried to be welcoming the way I used to be in my customer service jobs - answering questions, being available, and then stepping back instead of hovering.
In a strange way, the bread almost felt separate from me at first because of those experiences. I didn’t feel as if I was trying to push anything; I just wanted people to have a good experience at the Farmer’s Market on a Saturday morning.
That ended up being the shift. The less I tried to force anything, the more natural it all felt.
People especially loved the mini loaves, which I was grateful for since they were what drew most people in. Other vendors kept coming by to introduce themselves and say hi, and everyone was incredibly kind and encouraging. It surprised me that some people seemed impressed by my answers and products because I still felt pretty new to all of it.
By 11 a.m. I had almost sold out, and by noon I only had three loaves left: two chocolate chip and one rosemary roasted garlic mini. I even got a catering contact and had a few people disappointed that I’d already sold out.
When I packed up, my booth neighbors told me I did a great job and said they’d see me next Saturday. Driving home by noon with empty baskets in the backseat felt great!
This week I start again!
My view from the Farmers Market stall
New “mini” labels
fin!
