Over its past 18 years operating as a vendor for the “Fulton Street Farmers Market,” Pat and Ginny Rakowski’s Family Farm has solidified itself as a neighborhood mainstay, as well as a local business that is not afraid to innovate and dive into new fields of produce, meats and specialty products, such as homemade maple syrup and cider. And for the Rakowski’s hundreds of loyal customers, there’s always something new to find at their market.
“Any given time of the year, 90 to 99 percent of everything in the store is Michigan made or grown,” said Ginny Rakowski, the business’ co-owner alongside her husband, Pat. “Come summer, when we have all the Michigan produce, and some of that comes from our own farm as well, it’s closer to 95 to 99 percent.”
The Rakowski Family Farm & Market’s success has been an effort many years in the making, beginning most notably with the couple’s initiative to connect with their Fulton Street Farmers Market customers in the wintertime. Alongside another local farm, S&S Lamb, the Rakowski Family Farm continued this weekly tradition of contacting their consumers, packaging their orders, and distributing goods at the Fulton Street Market lot year round.
“We probably did that for 4 or 5 years, until the vendor board saw that there was a need for a winter market,” Ginny Rakowski said. “We would have 200 sales every Saturday in the wintertime, and they saw how many people would come out to shop.”
This “winter market” would eventually be known as the “Fulton Street Farmers Market - Second Season,” and the Rakowski Family Farm has not missed regular attendance in the past decade of its existence. And back at its beginning, staying in touch with their clients was not as simple as making a post on the Rakowski Farm’s Facebook page. Instead, Ginny and Pat Rakowski stuck with good, old-fashioned snail mail.
“When we first started, we sent out postcards,” Ginny Rakowski said. “We sometimes sent out 100 postcards depending on when we were going.”
In those early years, the Rakowski Farm was limited to products that remain some of their most popular items: Eggs, chicken, various meat cuts and homemade maple syrup. Over time, however, the pair introduced more and more offerings, such as their original apple cranberry cider or locally grown lettuce.
“My husband, Pat, has more history than I do because he grew up on the dairy farm,” Ginny Rakowski said. “However, we are mostly self-taught. I grew up in a hunting family, so we grew up grinding our own meat and doing all this stuff.”
In many cases, this gradual acclimation of learned knowledge and expertise has helped the Rakowski Market cater a unique, educational experience for its customers. The shopping space is covered with informational posters and notes that point patrons directly to the products and ingredients they want and know how to prepare. And if someone needs a lesson on how to try something new in the kitchen, there’s no one more suited to educate them than Ginny Rakowksi.
“Part of that is just knowing that you can do it,” Ginny Rakowski said. “You can supply it yourself and you can make it yourself. I’ve always had that mentality ever since I was little.”
Some of these treasured customer interactions even occur online, where the Rakowski Family Farm’s Facebook page is active with up-to-date photos and videos of life on the farm, including an up close view at the couple’s newest team of baby ducklings.
“People like to see what’s happening and what’s new on the farm,” Ginny Rakowski said.
In this current year, regular customers and first-time newcomers can expect the Rakowski Family Farm & Market to continually grow in its diverse offerings and local selections. An ever expanding produce aisle seems promising for new vegetable types to come, and a growing employee base in the business predicts an upward trajectory for the Rakowski Family Farm’s scope and impact on our local community.
Come by the Rakowski Market all weekdays and Saturdays at 953 E Fulton Street, or stop by the Fulton Street Farmers Market this summer for some of Pat Rakowksi’s famous ciders. He’ll be ready for you!
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