06/02/2026
❤️ so much I could pick apart here. So much I wish our community realized ... but at the same time , don't really want to have to put out there. Small business is hard. Farming is hard. Family business is hard. We don't mind the hard. The community aspect is important to us... working with others and never having to compete. Our doors are always open for that. We are so, SO grateful for those that have been willing to work with us.
Get out and support all the small, local businesses. They really, really want to to serve you!
Yesterday in a post I was talking about how the farm store makes very little money on other farms or small businesses products. In a comment from our friends at Ahillen Acres, it was mentioned that they just about had to force me to make any money off their products, and that’s a true story.
But, I try my best to run the farm store unlike many others. As a farmer myself, I know the costs involved in getting to the final product that hits the shelf or is in the freezer. That’s why I try to put as much money back in the farmers or small business owners pockets as possible. If we don’t work together, we are going to lose a very valuable way of life. In short the farm store is about trying to help grow farms and small businesses, even if in just a small way.
I’m also a consumer. I know that in most cases small farms cannot compete with retail stores on price. As I’ve explained before, it comes down to scale. But, what I can do is keep prices as low as I can; you’re not going to find huge markups when you walk through our door. You’re going to find a small farm store just trying to do right by everyone involved…..both farmer and consumer.
But here is what it boils down to, the farm store was never meant to be about just our farm or me personally. It’s part of something much bigger. It’s my hope, that you call can see the same vision I see when I speak about it being part of something much bigger.
It’s about creating a place where multiple farms, small businesses, and families can create a space to work together instead of competing against each other. It’s about creating a local food system and making real food more accessible to people who care about where their food comes from.
Everything on the shelves and freezers represents a family that still believes in doing things the right way. We are proud in that we can play a small roll in bringing the producer and consumer together under one roof.
This is bigger than just one farm.
Elvin Bradford
Homestead Hollow Farm
