The Downtown Growers’ Marketin Albuquerque kicks off its 26th season Saturday, April 16, without the pandemic-era restrictions it has navigated since 2020 and with a new, more diverse group of vendors and entertainers.
When Shawna Brown was hired as the new market manager in the middle of the season last year, they noticed something looking around at the booths.
“I was like, ‘where are all of my Black vendors at?’,” they said.
Ahead of this season, Brown focused on recruitment – reaching out to Black, brown and Indigenous vendors the market hadn’t worked with before.
“Making sure – as much as possible – that the market could really reflect the community at large,” they said.
Brown said their efforts paid off and nearly 40% of applications this year were from new vendors. They also offered new participants support in navigating the city’s extensive permitting process.
The kinds of live music customers will hear this year has been expanded, too.
“Yes, we get our folk sounds, but how do we get a little bit of funk or a little bit of jazz?,” Brown asked as they planned out the market’s 2022 lineup of live performances. “Because that kind of entertainment helps bring in customers that are maybe going to experience the market for the first time.”
These efforts build off previous initiatives to make the market more accessible and inclusive, including making it easier to get to the market by bike or bus, and accepting SNAP benefits. Brown said the market saw over $100,000 in EBT transactions last year.
While the market opens the season without the COVID restrictions it imposed in past years – like reduced capacity, limited entrances, social distancing and masking – Brown said they still want customers to feel safe and comfortable regardless of health status. Masking up isn’t required but is welcome, they said, and vendors have been encouraged to continue following COVID-safe practices voluntarily, including offering hand sanitizer.
