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Join the team: Farmers’ Market Lead

Posted on: April 12, 2023

Update: the deadline for this posting has now passed.

10C Shared Space (10C) is seeking a detail-oriented and outgoing changemaker to be the heart of the Guelph Farmers’ Market team. This role will involve facilitating all of the details of the Saturday Farmers’ Market, Thursdays at the Market, as well as supporting additional activation of the Farmers’ Market building through community events and space uses. The Farmers’ Market Lead will support marketing and outreach for the market, engage with the  market vendors and the local community, and co-create future events and activities with the 10C team and community stakeholders.

Responsibility of the Farmers’ Market Lead will include:

Farmers’ Market logistics, vendor management and administration for successful Saturday Farmers’ Market and Thursdays at the Market operations.

  • Oversee the weekly operation, set up and take down of the Saturday Farmers’ Market (year-round) and Thursdays at the Market (end of May through October).
  • Supervise staff in Market Assistant and Attendant roles, student roles and  various volunteers who provide supportive services for Market operations and community engagement.
  • Responsible for all vendor service, engagement and management, including: responding to inquiries and maintaining a waitlist, regular, kind and timely vendor communication, hosting vendor meetings, troubleshooting questions and concerns, mapping and placing vendor booths, and supporting a diverse mix of products and vendor types at the Markets.
  • Administration, review, enforcement and improvement of all market guidelines and policies, including Vendor Handbook(s) and License agreement(s).
  • Maintain and administer accurate vendor records using Manage My Market software, including: contracts, bookings, product lists, insurance tracking, financial, regulation compliance and communication logs.
  • Responsible for administration of all Market vendor license agreements, and spatial/booth details, including confirming that electrical equipment is ESA/CLA compliant.
  • Ensure that relevant Market data is collected to support reporting and data tracking needs.
  • Act as a liaison between the Market vendors and regulatory staff (i.e. Public Health, OMAFRA, Healthy & Safety Inspectors) and ensuring that the Market is in compliance with current regulations and best practices.

Marketing, promotion and community engagement support for all Market activities.

  • Oversee and offer input into all Market communications and marketing campaigns.
  • Support community connection and engagement through the Market newsletter, vendor newsletter and social media.
  • Create regular content, including vendor profiles, and/or content ideas for sharing through Market communication channels.
  • Offer suggestions for opportunities for engagement of community stakeholders and the general public.

Oversee Farmers’ Market building operations and logistics.

  • Oversee the day-to-day operation of the Farmers’ Market site, located at 2 Gordon Street in Guelph.
  • In collaboration with the 10C team, support the current renovation project as primary on-site contact. Offer feedback and perspectives as opportunities arise.
  • Maintain an accurate list of suppliers and ensure preferred pricing on all contracted services.
  • Oversee and monitor general building cleaning and maintenance. Prompt and schedule timely follow-up form 10C team or external contractors.
  • Collaborate with 10C team to prioritize longer-term facility maintenance and repairs, liaise with contracted service providers doing site maintenance.

Community events, activities and meetings.

  • In collaboration with the 10C team, respond to and direct inquiries for community event and meeting bookings to the appropriate channels and assist in follow-up as relevant.
  • In collaboration with 10C team, lead the development, promotion and execution of additional 10C markets and events at the market building and proactively engage opportunities for new space uses.
  • Work with community members to meet the needs of their events, including full orientation, guidelines and instructions, site set-up, logistics, coordination of catering and the pricing of single and multiple day events.
  • Follow-up after events for feedback and rebooking potential.
  • Ensure the building is adequately staffed as needed for special events, including 10C staff, Market staff and/or volunteers.
  • Oversee staff and volunteers to manage site set-up and take down for events, and support the development and execution of new 10C DIY systems and processes.

Other responsibilities

  • Working in a fast-paced, dynamic, community-focused, non-profit environment means that other opportunities and tasks arise. In addition to giving capacity to be all hands on deck at times, this flexibility also allows each 10C team member to engage with different projects and initiatives related to their specific interests, strengths, and goals.

Experience and abilities the Farmers’ Market Lead will bring to this role:

  • Experience in the food industry and/or farmers’ markets is essential.
  • Customer-focused, responsive, service mindset to ensure vendors and community members feel supported and welcomed.
  • Commitment to responsibility, accountability, and self-direction.
  • Experience in a fast-paced, community-facing role. Experience working in a non-profit environment is an asset.
  • Passion for well-managed logistics and clear scheduling demonstrated through experience working in a farmers’ market, multi-user facility or event-based context managing the needs of multiple stakeholders.
  • Ability to see and plan the big picture, enthusiasm for growth and a vision for new potential, with comfort leaning into unknown situations and seeking necessary answers.
  • Strong multi-tasking skills, ability to triage priorities, provide quick responses in any situation and hold many needs at once.
  • Experience supporting community events from planning through execution.
  • Comfort and enthusiasm for marketing and communications processes, including creating content for social media and writing newsletters. Basic graphic design capabilities are an asset.
  • Commitment to community engagement processes and practices, with experience hosting community meetings and seeking input from the public.
  • Training in Safe Food Handling is an asset. Ability to obtain/update Safe Food Handlers certificate through this role.
  • Experience using various software platforms including Farmers’ Market management software, Slack, Google Workspace, Eventbrite, WordPress, online scheduling, point of sale and customer relationship management system.
  • Some physical labour will be required (i.e. moving tables, tents).

The list above represents the mandate of this role and the experience and abilities needed to be successful. We understand not all candidates will have all of the qualifications or areas of expertise listed. If you have approximately 80% of the experience and abilities, or feel strongly that you could do this job well, we would love to hear from you.

Compensation and Details:

  • Start date is May 9, 2023 (flexible)
  • This is a full-time permanent position with a salary range of $54,000 – $60,000, based on 37.5 hours/week.
  • This position is primarily onsite at the Farmers’ Market building (2 Gordon Street, Guelph) and 10C Shared Space (42 Carden Street, Guelph).
  • Work schedule and days of work to be determined based on the candidate’s schedule and the needs of the role and team. Hours of work will include some evening and weekend work in addition to the required times of: Saturday Market day hours from 6:00AM to 3:00PM (year-round) and Thursday Market day hours from 2:00PM to 9:00PM (end of May through October) with some flexibility.
  • To support health and wellness, this role has access to:
    • Two (2) weeks vacation on an annual basis, with one (1) day vacation to be added per year of work to a maximum of five (5) additional days of paid vacation;
    • Additional time away of up to three (3) paid sick days, and two (2) paid ‘flex’ days off per year to be used at your discretion;
    • Extended Health Benefits package after 3 months of employment which includes: basic life and critical life insurance, extended healthcare, dental, vision and paramedical services. 

Next Steps:

Please email your cover letter and resume, specifying Farmers’ Market Lead in the subject line, to employment@10carden.ca. Please include in your cover letter the answer to the question, “What is your superpower?”

Application Deadline: 5:00pm Monday, May 1, 2023

Interviews will be held May 2-5. Recognizing that the interview process takes time and effort, all interviewed candidates will receive a $75.00 stipend for participating in an interview, including providing samples of work or other follow-up materials. We will also send interview questions in advance to give time to process questions.

We are excited to meet you!

10C is committed to learning, equity and building a diverse community in which everyone has the opportunity to thrive. We welcome team members with the knowledge and skills to productively work with diverse communities. 10C specifically encourages applications from those across race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, and lived experiences. 10C values lived experience alongside educational and workplace experience. If you are comfortable highlighting your lived experience in your application, this will help us consider your application in a holistic way.

Market stalls set-up under tents and customers shopping.