WHY BLUE DOGWOOD PUBLIC MARKET?
Whatever you want to call us - a public market, a food hall, or just an awesome place to hang out - we are here to celebrate local food. Emphasis on celebrate. And local. And food. |
Chapel Hill historically features a vibrant food culture, but small food vendors and food artisans face challenges to start retailing products, such as difficulty in affording a prime retail outlet downtown. It is also difficult to get into local farmers’ markets since only 20% of farmers’ market vendors are non-farmers.
Blue Dogwood is the first public market in North Carolina to focus on locally-produced products. The indoor year-round market features small, local food businesses who might otherwise find it cost prohibitive to open a retail space. Blue Dogwood maximizes the number of food vendors to spread out costs, increase foot traffic, bring a more diverse community to our customers, and create a more viable business opportunity for small businesses. We are a community of like-minded small businesses who believe in working together to create something awesome. |
Blue Dogwood’s open floor concept allows vendors to minimize the size of their individual rental stalls and share common area and equipment costs.
Blue Dogwood occupies 4,002 square feet of the shopping center with convenient access to both the main parking lot and the back parking lot on Rosemary Street. We minimize stall square footage by vendors sharing common costs. Each vendor has complete control over their core space, but with the benefit of sharing seating areas, bathrooms, and handicap accessibility. Vendors also have the benefit of inexpensively renting our adjacent small-batch kitchen for food prep or demonstrations.
We have smaller stalls and more vendors because we think this model creates more customer interest, increases foot traffic, and leads to customers crossing over between vendors.
Blue Dogwood occupies 4,002 square feet of the shopping center with convenient access to both the main parking lot and the back parking lot on Rosemary Street. We minimize stall square footage by vendors sharing common costs. Each vendor has complete control over their core space, but with the benefit of sharing seating areas, bathrooms, and handicap accessibility. Vendors also have the benefit of inexpensively renting our adjacent small-batch kitchen for food prep or demonstrations.
We have smaller stalls and more vendors because we think this model creates more customer interest, increases foot traffic, and leads to customers crossing over between vendors.
COMMUNITY
Blue Dogwood believes in a business model where vendors help each other with feedback and advice. We seek vendors willing to talk openly and share about their business and ideas. We encourage vendors to create mutually beneficial relationships, such as partnering in joint marketing, special events, and social media efforts. Vendors can crossover and use others’ products, such as a sandwich shop using a baker’s bread. If it makes sense for the vendors, we even encourage businesses to share a stall.
Vendor selectivity is critical to our community model because we all share a small space. We look for vendors with unique products and minimal overlap with other vendors. Blue Dogwood is small compared to other markets, but this size gives us more flexibility and allows us to build a strong sense of community.
Blue Dogwood believes in a business model where vendors help each other with feedback and advice. We seek vendors willing to talk openly and share about their business and ideas. We encourage vendors to create mutually beneficial relationships, such as partnering in joint marketing, special events, and social media efforts. Vendors can crossover and use others’ products, such as a sandwich shop using a baker’s bread. If it makes sense for the vendors, we even encourage businesses to share a stall.
Vendor selectivity is critical to our community model because we all share a small space. We look for vendors with unique products and minimal overlap with other vendors. Blue Dogwood is small compared to other markets, but this size gives us more flexibility and allows us to build a strong sense of community.
WHAT MAKES BLUE DOGWOOD DIFFERENT THAN OTHER FOOD HALLS?
- We have small stall sizes with flexible square footage
- We focus on vendors who are starting up or want a more affordable rental option
- We encourage vendors to work together to use the products of other vendors
- We have pop-up stalls for food businesses to test out a business concept
- We encourage vendors to carry complementary products of other local businesses to fill out product offerings
- We offer amenities such as ample storage for rent, joint marketing events, and opportunities for special events
- Owners of Blue Dogwood own two stalls, so we manage businesses alongside our vendors - this makes us more value-conscious and aware of the challenges of running a stall
OUR GOALS
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1. To provide a thriving and affordable rental space for small local fresh food vendors, retail vendors, and pop-ups who might otherwise find it cost prohibitive to rent retail space in a prime location.
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2. To create a vendor-friendly community of businesses that reduces marketing and promotion costs through shared space, shared networking, and customer crossover.
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3. To create a varied marketplace of local vendors that attracts diverse customers from across the Piedmont, bringing affordable and accessible knowledge about cooking, healthy eating, and food.
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WHAT'S A BLUE DOGWOOD?
Dogwood aren't *technically* blue, but we wanted a name that captures both the local spirit of Chapel Hill and the Old North State. The dogwood is the state flower of North Carolina, and blue is painted all over town because of the university. But don't worry, Duke and State fans, our blue is different than Carolina's.
Dogwood aren't *technically* blue, but we wanted a name that captures both the local spirit of Chapel Hill and the Old North State. The dogwood is the state flower of North Carolina, and blue is painted all over town because of the university. But don't worry, Duke and State fans, our blue is different than Carolina's.