Vendors create indoor farmers' market to meet winter demand in Sudbury

There's a group of vendors that will still be selling their products, even after the local farmer's market closes for the season.

The market operated by the city of Greater Sudbury runs every Thursday afternoon and Saturday morningduring the summer and early fall. The final Saturday market isOct.27.

Lina Godard is one of four vendors who decided to create an indoor winter market. It is not connected to the city.

Godard is an alpaca farmer in McKerrow. She sells handmade alpaca products and alpaca meat at the current farmers' market.

"We just decided to go knocking on doors and see what, if anything, was available to us," she said.

"That's basically how we initiated [the Winter Market]. It was a want that we wanted, and by talking to others it's also a want that many vendors want."

Godard says the committee posted about the winter market on Facebook and within two days they were overwhelmed with messages and comments.

"The response was phenomenal, between vendors wanting to participate and customers inquiring about location and time."

Indoor space at SouthridgeMall

The Winter Market is set to launch Saturday, Nov.3, in a large indoor space at the Southridge Mall.

It will operate between 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m, for eight consecutive Saturdays until just before Christmas.

After the eight week pilot project, Godard says they'll take January to assess how it all went.

"That gives us that month to kind of look at the whole thing, evaluate the whole thing, whether or not it is something we want to continue over the winter or whether it's something we want to do every year for a short period of time," she said.

"This pilot project will tell us a lot."

Godard says up to 40 vendors will be able to sell in the indoor space at the mall.

"Our ultimate goal is to have the space full of vendors."