Durham's Mint Market Offers Chefs and Farmers Thoughtful Online Solution

Dining in Durham is a great object lesson in the synergy between supply and demand in both a literal and tangible way. It also happens to be outrageously tasty. Chefs want local food and farmers want to move their product to people who will treat it with care - many would prefer to move that product the shortest distance possible.

Mint Market is a new Durham start up serving as an online marketplace for local food. As of Sunday, July 29 chefs and farmers can start saving a lot of time and get back to doing what they do best.

The new website will allow chefs in the Triangle to discover, purchase, and schedule delivery of food directly from area farms. Farmers must sign up by Saturday, July 28 to have their products included on opening day.

“We’ve been testing Mint Market with amazing local chefs and farmers. Now we’re ready to open the floodgates,” said Ricky Spero, Mint Market’s founder. “We can’t wait to see what they do with this powerful new tool.” Mint Market will showcase some of the area’s finest local vendors, including Maple View Farm, Hillsborough Cheese Co., and Dock to Door Seafood. 

The scheduling of this process is crucial for chefs and farmers alike. It allows them both to focus on the critical aspects of buying and selling. Balancing the two is no easy feat, and Mint Market gives farmers an efficient way to sell their products to restaurants using e-commerce. Farmers update their inventories on Saturday. Chefs shop on Sunday. Farmers harvest on Monday and deliver to restaurants on Tuesday. Listing products on Mint Market is free. When farmers complete a sale, Mint Market takes a 5% fee.

Spero sees a time when Mint Market will be available to retail consumers, but for now he's very much focused on the commercial aspect of this enterprise. "We think that the consumer market for  local food is really exciting, but right now we're 100% focused on getting wholesale right," he added.

Scott Howell, chef-owner of Nana’s Restaurant in Durham, was Mint Market’s first customer. “This is something the area really needs. From our earliest days, Nana’s has supported local farms. Mint Market is going to make that much easier.”

“Mint Market solves so many problems,” adds Sam Hummel, co-owner of Ever Laughter Farm in Hillsborough. “We love working with chefs, but everyone has to spend a lot of time on the phone. Mint Market makes it more likely that we’ll be able to connect with the right chef at the right time.”

Spero is clear about the role that Mint Market aims to play. “We love food, but we’re a technology company at our core. We ask ourselves how we think people will buy food five years from now. And then we build it, so everyone can start doing it today.”

Amanda Miller, owner of Dock to Door Seafood, aims to shift her existing business onto Mint Market’s platform. Said Miller, “We drive fish directly from the coast to chefs’ kitchens, so we have a very tight timeline. Mint Market can handle all of our ordering and logistics. It’s hard to imagine how we could scale without this.”

Noah Ranells, co-owner of Fickle Creek Farm and Agricultural Economic Development Coordinator for Orange County, said, "Mint Market is an elegant solution that makes the most of the busy schedules that farmers and chefs experience on a daily basis. I think that it will appeal to a growing number of farms in Orange County and the Piedmont Region." Ranells is also on the board of Piedmont Grown.

Aaron Benjamin, chef at Rue Cler Restaurant, used Mint Market during the testing phase. “I like the ease and usability of the website and I will definitely order more product as it becomes available.”

Those visiting the website are encouraged to sign up to learn more as the service rolls out. Spero will be updating people as news unfolds.

Really Small News?

The creators of the Bull City Startup Stampede are back at it with a new project.  It's a really big deal and a great opportunity for the winner.  The exposure will be massive and the financial value is big.  It's just that the space is, well, small.

Really small.

The Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Durham, Inc. are partnering once again to bring entrepreneurs to downtown Durham, this time through an initiative called The Smoffice. A national competition, The Smoffice will provide one startup with six months of free space in “The World’s Smallest Office” as well as  a free six-month lease on a downtown condo.

The Smoffice will be located in the storefront window of Beyu Caffe, a prominent coffee shop on Main Street. “We are excited to be working with Dorian (owner of Beyu) as we think entrepreneurship and coffee make a great pair,” said Adam Klein, Startup Strategist at the Durham Chamber. “We like the energy of the crowd that spends time at Beyu Caffe and think this location will give the winning entrepreneur an easy opportunity to meet and mingle with fellow entrepreneurs and Durham’s business leaders.”

The Smoffice design was created by Center Studio Architecture and constructed by McDonald York. The winning entrepreneur will enjoy a custom built desk as well as free furniture from CBi and a tablet. In addition to the commercial space, the winner will get to enjoy downtown Durham around the clock with a free condo at Mangum 506.

“Downtown Durham powers startups and we want to give The Smoffice winner as much exposure and time in Durham as possible,” said Downtown Durham Inc.’s Director of Marketing Matthew Coppedge. “We are quickly becoming a significant startup hub and The Smoffice gives us a great chance to continue to feature entrepreneurs and the kind of energy and creativity they drive in a downtown environment. This initiative will show that one does not need the best or fanciest space to launch a successful company, but rather be surrounded by a stimulating environment and people.”

The Smoffice winner will also receive technical assistance from startup experts in legal, accounting and marketing. Perhaps most important, the winner will be networked with the 70 other startups that call downtown Durham home.

 Applications for The Smoffice open on Leap Day, February 29 and close Friday, March 30. Interested applicants can learn more at www.thesmoffice.com or on Twitter @thesmoffice. Applications should include a one page business plan along with a 60 second You Tube video detailing why the startup should win The Smoffice space. The Smoffice winner will be announced on Friday, April 13 and the winner will arrive in Durham and open The Smoffice on Monday, April 30. Website design for The Smoffice was provided by Kompleks Creative.

Durham is a great place for big ideas, big personalities and big businesses...but they all started someplace (ugh.) small.

Durham a Hotbed of Entrepreneurial Activity

Durham, a city with deep entrepreneurial roots, is again garnering national attention for its progressive and innovative community. Currently, the Chamber estimates that downtown Durham is home to over 50 startup companies, employing more than 500 people. Also home to the Research Triangle Park, Durham really is a city to be reckoned with.  

These facts make it easy to see why the Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce announced the Bull City Startup Stampede at vertically the same time the federal government announced its intention to begin a series of roundtables aimed at reducing barriers and regulations to build a more supportive environment for entrepreneurship and innovation right here in Durham on March 3. Here is more information on each program.

The Bull City Startup Stampede, will provide startups access to 3,500 square feet of office space at 201 W. Main Street in downtown Durham for 60 days. During the Stampede, entrepreneurs will have time to focus on launching their business, receive free technical assistance from attorneys, accountants, and other service providers and meet with several successful entrepreneurs located in downtown Durham. Entrepreneurs will get to use the state’s fastest Wi-Fi connection courtesy of Time Warner Cable Business Class and receive free parking compliments of the City of Durham. Local companies nBaxter Design, Edge Office, Preation and Smashing Boxes have provided additional support for the project – assisting with logistical aspects of the Stampede. This program is courtesy of courtesy of the Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Durham, Inc. and Self-Help Commercial Real Estate.

The Startup America: Reducing Barriers roundtables are in response to President Obama’s issuing of an Executive Order instructing federal agencies to identify and take steps to reduce regulations that are outdated or overly burdensome to entrepreneurs. The roundtable series will build on this directive and is part of the Administration’s overall Startup America efforts to support for startups and entrepreneurs with tools and resources to grow America’s economy and win the future. Entrepreneurs and small business owners in Durham interested in attending any of the events can learn more by emailing reducingbarriers@sba.gov or by visiting www.sba.gov/startupamerica.