A walk through the Ann Arbor Farmer’s Market
University of Michigan medical student Aja Sharma started selling produce at Goetz Farms’ Farmers Market stand this summer after hearing about the job from a friend.
The farm is based in Riga, Mich., which is close to the Ohio border.
On work days, Sharma arrives at the Farmers Market around 7 a.m., and she helps with selling produce and bagging what customers purchase. She comes whenever they need an extra pair of hands at the stand.
Sharma’s started going to bed earlier because of this job.
“I’m not the most morning person,” she said.
For her, the most rewarding part of the work is the community.
“I don’t interact with strangers much,” she said. “So I love seeing all the different people in the community.”
The produce isn’t the only thing growing at Goetz Farms – Sharma’s relationship with her coworkers is blossoming, too.
“Everyone’s super kind, and it’s fun to be on a team,” she said.
Cool, cut, pack, repeat.
A little closer to the main entrance of the Farmers Market sits Tasty Bakery, a local gluten free bakery that opened in 2009 after the owner was diagnosed with celiac disease.
Stats from National Library of Medicine
Recent University of Michigan Master’s graduate Naz Doranderish sells their baked goods every Saturday at the Farmers Market. During the week, she works in the store, doing whatever baking and selling tasks are on her “list.”
On weekdays, Doranderish has a tight schedule due to there not being many employees.
“It’s a smaller bakery, so the work is pretty time-consuming,” she said.
Doranderish is looking forward to other future work opportunities, too.
“This is a survival job,” she said.
Regardless, Doranderish does enjoy coming to the Farmers Market every Saturday and talking to the vendors around her.
“It’s nice to meet the people that come here,” she said.
“We missed you last week, Joe!”
Joseph Sanna has close relationships with many of his loyal customers at the Farmers Market where his family business, Give and Grow Mushrooms, sets up shop every Saturday. After being away last week, many of them were excited to see him back.
Sanna’s Farmers Market days start at 3:30 a.m. He arrives from Macomb County to the Farmers Market by 6 a.m. and immediately jumps into work. Give and Grow Mushrooms, his business, sits at the back corner of the market.
Sanna and his dad grow cultivated mushrooms indoors, and they sell them around Michigan throughout the year. They have multiple varieties of fresh mushrooms as well as black garlic.
Sanna said that the community at the Ann Arbor’s Farmers Market is “stellar.”
“There are so many different types of people who are interested in cooking and where food comes from,” he said. “You have doctors, people in tech and everything in between.”
Sanna works full-time as a chemical engineer. Still, he makes sure to prioritize the family business. After his dad closed his pet supply store, he was looking for a new business to go into, and growing mushrooms just happened to work out for them.
The highlight of Sanna’s time at the Farmers Market, though, is the close connections he’s made with his customers over the past six years.
“I’ve watched customers go from dating to having kids,” he said. “It’s really a familial relationship.”
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