Logan Square Farmers Market’s New Location Gets Rave Reviews From Shoppers, Vendors

LOGAN SQUARE — Turbulent Fourth of July weekend weather didn’t stop thousands from flocking to the heart of Logan Square for their weekly Sunday shop and stroll through the popular and refurbished farmers market.

The Logan Square Farmers Market, which moved to its permanent home at the redesigned square in May after moving around in recent years due to area construction, is settling in well with the neighborhood, according to neighbors, shoppers and vendors.

At Sunday’s market, music and the smell of fresh food filled the air, with attendees and vendors complimenting the new home and shopping flow as a more communal and accessible experience than in years past.

“I think it’s way better, because you can shop and come back easily,” said Ashlee Roffe, of Albany Park, who regularly visits the market with her children. “You also can compare the fruits and vegetables a little bit more.”

Etienne Briddell, of Austin, visited the new market location for the first time Sunday. She said finding parking wasn’t as easy as when the market was along Kedzie Boulevard last year, but she liked that it has more places to sit and is near other businesses.

“It feels a little bit less packed but I also liked when it was in one row, and when they had something on the two ends,” Briddell said.

Kyle Washington, founder of Frogtown Juice Co., is one of several vendors who have already reported higher sales than in previous years around this time in the market season.

Washington has been part of the market on and off since 2019 when it was at two other nearby locations. As it’s continued to gain popularity and vendors have fought for spots in recent years, he said he’s glad to be one of the few juice vendors this season and to see the benefits of the new space.

“I think there was a little bit of paralysis by analysis in previous years, just with how many vendors there were and how big the market was, but the way the layout is now, it allows people to be more intentional” with their shopping, Washington said.

He said he sells about 1,000 juice bottles a week, with 40-50 percent of his customers being repeat shoppers who get discounts for returning their glass bottles. His sustainable business model has also helped him grow, he said.

While Washington has heard from some customers who miss the market’s original layout on Logan Boulevard because it wasn’t as overwhelming, he attributes his financial success partly to the increased vendor visibility, shopper flow and fewer competing juice vendors.

The market has 24 fewer booths compared to previous years due to space constraints, Nilda Esparza, market producer and president of the Logan Square Chamber of Commerce, previously said. There are 103 rotating farmers and food vendors lined up inside the plaza and along Logan Boulevard — with 44 weekly farmers — plus 14 rotating vintage vendors who were absorbed into the market three years ago set up at La Placita in front of Reno, Same Day Cafe and other Kedzie Avenue businesses. 

At the Gorman Farm Fresh Produce stand, workers and employees were digging around for vegetables and wrapping them up for their journey home. Co-owner Kevin Gorman said the market layout has increased visibility and separation between the farmers and indie vintage vendors.

“So far it’s been good for business and we are happy with the new location,” Gorman said. “We’re up a little bit in business, so a lot of it has to do with visibility, but we spent a lot of money on marketing because we bought these tent tops.”

Camila Forero, a vintage vendor from Humboldt Park who sells clothing at La Placita every third Sunday under her brand I Find Cool Stuff, also praised the square’s redesign and market footprint. She was one of the unofficial indie vendors who set up shop near the original market location back in 2020, so being part of the operations now is a business boon.

“It was very stressful because back then you would show up and maybe there wasn’t room for you,” Forero said. “Now I have a spot and it’s very affordable. The crowd is great. They built it so that [the plaza] is walkable, shoppable now. There’s no dirt floors, so it makes a difference.”

The market has been named the best in the city by the Reader for seven years in a row and has brought over 80,000 visitors to the square since debuting in its new home, Esparza said last month. It runs every Sunday through October.