Today we’d like to introduce you to Pamela Sharp Beito.
Hi Pamela Sharp, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Bay Area Farmers Market was primarily started to satisfy my husband’s and my desire to sell our honey at a farmers market in the parking lot of the very popular and busy Baybrook Mall. We did not originally think of starting a farmers market there; rather, we were hoping that someone would and give us the opportunity to sell our honey in it. However, as Dane and I sold honey in numerous markets each week all over the Greater Houston Area for several years, it appeared that we would not have the opportunity to participate in a farmers market at the mall. As the opportunity alluded us, I approached the mall management about the possibility of entering into a “lease agreement” for space in the parking lot for a weekly farmers market. They agreed, and on October 14, 2018, Bay Area Farmers Market held its first farmers market in the parking lot of Baybrook Mall! But this is how it truly began: Towards the end of a 25-year career in the legal industry, I met a hobbyist beekeeper. He was at the end of his 25-year career as a Harley-Davidson mechanic and was experiencing the spark of a passion he had as a ten years old. His best friend’s father had given him a hive of honey bees. When I met Dane, he had approximately eight hives. As our relationship grew, so did my love of honeybees. We worked together raising bees, growing the number of hives, and subsequently selling honey, all while juggling our careers and caring for my aging parents. It did not take long to reach the point in our “side business”, Gulf Coast Honey Bee Farms, to realize that we needed to decide whether or not to go out on a limb, leave the security of our careers, and pursue our beekeeping, honey producing, and bee removal (removal of bees from homes and other structures and relocating them) businesses full-time. We also realized that while we were best friends and partners in business, we were ready to commit to being partners in life.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
No way has it been a smooth road! Each week there are challenges, but we move on and try to learn something from each of them. Having enough farmers with produce is a challenge, particularly since our farmers market takes place on Sunday (Saturday is typically the busy farmers market day), and we are further South from most of the farmers who sell in farmer’s markets. Weather is always a challenge for both the farmers and the farmers market… wind, heat, lightning, extreme cold. Dealing with the local health department (we’re in Harris County’s jurisdiction) because they charge the vendors, who are very small businesses, permit fees in excess of what the law allows. A new law went into effect in September 2019, which capped the permit fees that health departments could charge food producers selling their food at farmer’s markets.
However, Harris County found a loophole and continued to charge our vendors high permit fees. A “clean up bill” is currently before our State Legislature, so we are hopeful this challenge will be resolved! And then, of course, who hasn’t been challenged by Covid-19? There are so many different levels of concern about Covid-19 and the spread of Covid-19, from no concern to paranoia and all in between. We operated as a drive-thru market the first six weeks of our limited knowledge of Covid-19. Then we adopted protocols which included social distancing and requiring our vendors to wear facial covering. However, a few months ago, Harris County issued a mandate ordering businesses to require facial covering of everyone in a Harris County business, including at Bay Area Farmers Market (although it is an outdoor market). To comply with our Harris County Fire Marshal permit, we adopted the “No Mask No Entry” policy. This policy made some people happy and angered others.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am grateful for the organizational skills I acquired as a paralegal, the experience I gathered as a farmers market vendor, and the observations I made as a result of my interest in understanding people throughout the many years of my life. All of those things play into the management of Bay Area Farmers Market. We strive to balance the needs and demands of our community with the needs and demands of our vendors. It is extremely important to provide healthy and/or fresh alternatives to our customers while providing support for our local agricultural vendors, small businesses, and entrepreneurs. In an effort to maintain our concept of a true farmers market, in which consumers may talk to the food producers, or their knowledgeable employees, about their practices, their ingredients, etc., and subsequently, make informed decisions about the food they consume and/or feed their families, we are very selective when approving vendors for our farmers market. We don’t care about being the biggest market around. We care about having the best vendors, transparency, and maintaining the true farmers market concept!
What do you like and dislike about the city?
My parents moved to Houston when I was six months old. Except for my time in the U.S. Army, I’ve lived here my whole life. So, I am definitely partial to my city. However, I’ve always lived in the suburbs, and for the most part, the Southside of the city, halfway between the city and Galveston Island. I’ve been more of a summertime, outdoor, beach-type girl, so I’ve always loved the Bay Area and Galveston Island. Most municipalities enjoy boasting about growth… however, it is likely what I dislike most about our city. Our wildlife, including honeybees and other pollinators, are losing their natural habitats and food sources. Someday, we may have to find other ways of growing our own food if we continue to lose the land to subdivisions and freeways.
Contact Info:
- Email: bayareafarmersmarket@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.bayareafarmersmarkettexas.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bayareafarmersmarket
What to check out next:
Aleasha Bahr is a sales & marketing strategist known for showing introverts and ambiverts the Secret Art of Subtle Selling. She personally sold millions in revenue while discovering introverts are usually top sales people – as soon as they stop trying to act like extroverts. We’ve partnered with her to produce Introverted Entrepreneur Success Stories. Check out episode 1 below:
