A program of Jefferson County Farmers Markets aims to make it easier for people of the global majority to start and grow their market businesses.

Entering its third year, the BIPOC Start-Up Business Fund works to address and remove financial barriers that have an impact on the inclusion of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in these markets.

Executive Director Amanda Milholland grew up in Port Townsend. She began her eighth season with the nonprofit Jefferson County Farmers Markets (JCFM) in October.

“The farmers market is a place where small businesses get started and grow and thrive,” Milholland said. “It's a huge part of what has made agriculture a viable piece of our local economy. And the culture of small farms and small businesses here are a huge part of what people love about this space.”

Last year, more than 100 small businesses participating in JCFM’s Port Townsend and Chimacum farmers markets did $1.7 million in sales, she said.

“We serve a population that includes a lot of people who are beginning farmers, beginning small businesses owners, artists, and food makers,” Milholland said. “These vendors as a whole are younger and more diverse in terms of racial and gender identity, and sexual orientation, than the population of Jefferson County.”

She said the nonprofit wants to invest in these business owners through the Start-Up Fund, creating space for a diversity of people to participate in farmers markets.

“I’m really excited for its potential,” she said. “For us it's been a way we can intentionally welcome people who have been systematically excluded from access to financing and inherited wealth, while recognizing the impact of white supremacy in our country.”

Participation in the BIPOC Start-Up Business Fund has grown steadily, from one vendor during the first year, up to seven individual or team recipients in 2023. So far every applicant has received some form of support from JCFM.

Midwife and herbalist Meshell Orozco was a fund recipient in 2023 as part of a group application joining several vendors in collaboration.

Orozco’s business, Raíces Midwifery, is a home birth midwifery care practice that offers culturally centered, empowering, and personalized holistic healthcare. She said the Start-Up fund and resources helped some vendors overcome challenges such as language differences or a shortage of computer skills.

“For me overall it was a really good experience and I felt supported,” Orozco said. “The fund covered a lot of our fees, like our application fee and the fee for the booth, so that was amazing. They even provided us with tents and tables. And it was really nice to be close to other Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, feeling a sense of solidarity with the community.”

This year the Start-Up program is offered in two tracks: incubator and accelerator.

The incubator track is designed to remove all barriers for business owners wanting to try out the farmers market for the first time. Grantees receive benefits such as a tent and table, volunteer help, a fee-free market space, and reimbursement for business licensing or food service permit fees, as applicable.

Accelerator grants are for vendors who have sold at the Jefferson County markets for one to three years. Grants of up to $1,500 help these businesses take their next growth steps. Recipients also get free access to resources such as business development training.

“We continue to learn and grow as we see how it's used,” Milholland said, “and the nonprofit adjusts over time to meet specific community needs.”

Community support shows up in the form of local sponsors, such as Windermere Real Estate and Corvus Crafts. “It feels like a real vote of confidence in our markets,” Milholland said. “And we need more support if we are going to continue growing these opportunities for businesses that could use a boost and investment from our community.”

Fund planning and administration is managed by the nonprofit’s Board Equity Committee. Together with Milholland they address topics like networking, community building, and support that reaches beyond the financial.

“I’m infinitely impressed with the ingenuity of our small businesses, and their willingness and ability to find a way,” Milholland said. “As we look around and see the cost of property and housing continue to increase in our community, it's more and more challenging for people who are working in arts and farming and food businesses, as well as other areas of our economy, to actually make a go of it in Jefferson County.”

JCFM also works with Usawa Consulting, a local educator group focused on racial equity and inclusion, to train vendors, staff and board members. “We’re continuing to do the work ourselves as a nonprofit, to increase the inclusion and sense of belonging at our markets,” Milholland said.

There is no deadline for the BIPOC Start-Up Business Fund application, but interested parties are encouraged to apply alongside their market vendor application, to facilitate timing of grants to have the greatest possible impact. Ideally, grants can be applied to application fees and vendor memberships right away, Milholland said.

Recipients must identify as a person of the global majority or BIPOC. They must be vendors who have applied (or intend to apply) to a Jefferson County market, and are within their first three years as a JCFM vendor. Each business must be approved for market participation before their Start-Up Fund application will be considered. Translation services are available for applicants who need them.

Applications are now being accepted for the 2024 JCFM season. The Port Townsend Farmers Market full-season application is due Feb. 1, and the Chimacum market application is due March 1.

This last year JCFM welcomed more than 100 businesses to their two markets.

“These are businesses that are not going to get a downtown storefront,” Milholland said. “They had a place to start at the farmers market.”

For more information about the BIPOC Start-Up Fund, visit jcfmarkets.org/bipoc-start-up-business-fund online, or email info@jcfmarkets.org.