What is Lakeshore Depot all about?
Lakeshore Depot started as a way to help strengthen our food system by operating under a farm stop model, the idea being to combine elements of a farmers market, grocery store, and coffee shop into one place. All of the products are locally or regionally sourced. It’s an outlet for local food producers and farmers to sell their goods, and for customers to find local products.
We curate diverse product offerings to be as close to a full-service grocery store as possible, working in the confines of what’s available in our region. We have groceries, dairy, eggs, local produce and meats, and also some deli items and beverages that we produce in-house.
What led you to open Lakeshore Depot?
About ten years ago, I attempted to operate a micro-farm which grew a variety of vegetables and raised dairy goods. I experienced firsthand both how fulfilling and how difficult it is to make a career as a farmer, and had the opportunity to work alongside our local food producers. When I exited farming, I wanted to find a way to help support those other people because I could really see and relate to the challenges they faced.
When the COVID shutdown happened, all the local farmers met to discuss how to respond to that situation, and whether there would be a farmers market that year, and it sparked this idea. I opened Lakeshore Depot in July, 2020. It was my response to the trauma and uncertainty of the world–our shelves are emptying; how are we going to get food up here if the trucks stop coming?
What do customers like best about it?
The relaxed, friendly atmosphere, and knowing that all the products there are supporting our local food region. Lots of people really appreciate having a neighborhood grocery store they can walk to for staple foods like milk and eggs. Our multi-farm CSA box has gotten great feedback and allows us to provide local food to community members in need at a fraction of tis retail price.
We’re located in the Lakeshore Park building which is across from McCarty’s Cove off Lakeshore Blvd., back around the corner from Fred’s Rubber Stamp shop. So lots of tourists and neighborhood customers come in–people out going to the beach or for a walk around town, depending upon the weather.
What do you enjoy most about running it?
I love fostering an environment of community interaction and engagement, being able to use food and agriculture to create a space to build community, to gather people together and share experiences and knowledge, to gather vendors and employees together that really understand and resonate with the mission and want to engage with it on more than a basic level.
It’s led to new friendships and connections within the community. I’ve been able to connect different people who are into harvesting wild plants or want to brew something. I love facilitating those types of connections.
What’s surprised you most about running it?
How dynamic it is–the balance of customer flow and employees, product availability and cash flow. I’ve become more aware of some of the food industry’s challenges in general, besides those specific to farming.
Future plans for Lakeshore Depot?
We did $86,000 in sales our first year and had similar sales in July 2023 alone, with more transactions in that one month than we did in our whole first six months of business. Our retail space has gone from 400 square feet to 1500, so we have a larger space, better displays, wider product selection.
So our biggest focus is stabilizing the growth and expansion we’ve undertaken and refining the systems we need to operate at the size we’re at, making sure they’re aligned with our mission–purchasing local items as opposed to others that might be easier for us to purchase.
We’re looking at how we might better articulate our mission, better connect farmer-growing aspects, educate consumers on that, educate people on why we exist, who we exist to suport,and how they can start their own businesses too.
We’re here to serve the needs of the community and looking at how we can better do that. If there are needs for strengthening our local food system that we’re not serving, how can we do that? We want to figure out how to give other people a seat at the table and a platform for their voices to shape the future of the organization. How do I take this thing I started from “I can go fastest alone” to “How can we now go further together?”
Excerpt from the Fall 2023 issue of Health & Happiness U.P. Magazine, copyright 2023, Empowering Lightworks, LLC. All rights reserved.
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