Denton Community Market is increasing fees for food vendors

By Charles E Burkett

POSTED: FEB 20 2020 4:18PM CST

DENTON - The Denton Community Market has experienced some changes for the eleventh season. Every Saturday in the spring you can find local farmers and artisans just off the square at the market. Some vendors are seeing increases in the fees that are needed to take space at the corner of Mulberry St and Carrol St.

The fees for food vendors have seen an annual increase from $240 to $324. This is causing some concerns that this will cause some vendors to leave the market.

The executive director of the market, Chelsea Lewis stated, “From my understanding and speaking with the Denton Development Services and the city council it wasn’t something that was intended to directly impact us, it was just a rollout with several other fees.”

Smaller businesses could be impacted by this if not budgeting properly and seeing a cut in profits.

Though other business owners believe that this is just part of the business for the Denton Community Market. The market is a nonprofit organization, though some feel that it should be self-sustainable.

Combs’ Coffee owner and Denton Community Market board member, James Combs, said, “So, I think as long as they’re smart and price their goods accordingly it shouldn’t affect them too much.”

Though the cost increase is from the city, the benefits seen by the vendors show value in other ways. Combs believes that the traffic that is brought to the market is worth the additional amount.

Combs also explains that a community market can be a testing place for new products.

Combs explained, “It just gets you comfortable answering questions about your product, people give you all sorts of different opinions and ideas on ways to, you know, refine it, and so on.”

Lewis has presented the Denton City Council to help with some of the fees but declined. They went to the council to express concern as an advocate for the vendors. The Denton Community Market starts on April 4thfor its eleventh season.