Handmade and Heartfelt: North Port farmers market asks community to shop local

NORTH PORT, Fla. (WINK) — A local farmers market in North Port is asking the community to support small businesses and shop local.

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The Shop Local North Port Market takes place every Saturday at North Port High School and is open 51 weeks out of the year. The market features a variety of vendors selling handmade and locally created products, including pottery, leather goods, dog treats, honey, baked goods and more.

While every booth offers something different, many of the products share one thing in common: they are handmade by the vendors themselves.

Kelly Fields, owner of the market, said creating a space focused on handmade products was important from the beginning.

“People are making these products by hand. They're putting their hearts and souls into products,” Fields said. “That's the point of this market. You can go to the store and buy them, but being able to meet someone face to face makes it special.”

Fields also owns “Fields with Love,” a business that sells all natural dog and cat treats. She said many customers are surprised to learn the treats are homemade.

“People kept asking where we get our treats, but we hand make these,” Fields said. “We wouldn't feed anything to anyone else's dog that we wouldn't give our own dogs. That's what's so special about the market because we aren't the only ones making handmade products.”

The market is also filled with vendors who each have their own unique story.

Jordan Eyre, owner of “Turn and Burn,” sells handmade pottery at the market.

After retiring from the Air Force, he used his GI Bill to study ceramics.

Eyre said the market creates opportunities for vendors to support one another while connecting with the community.

“I get to work with other vendors, like Guilded Nautilus and Mike at Feral Coffee,” Eyre said.

Eyre, who is a disabled veteran, said the market has also helped him connect with the community.

“Being a disabled veteran it's fun to connect with people,” he said.Christina Wildhagen, owner of Guilded Nautilus, said community support is essential for small businesses and local artisans.

“We have fantastic vendors. We have a wide variety of handmade artisan products,” Wildhagen said.

She said shopping at local markets helps small business owners continue doing what they love.

“When you shop local, the owners care a lot about their consumers and what they're giving them,” Wildhagen said.

The market also features local Englewood honey, a student selling fidget toys for others who struggle to pay attention, and a local baker who turned a childhood nickname into a baking business.

The Shop Local North Port Market takes place every Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at North Port High School.

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