Farmers Market sponsorship up for grabs on eBay auction

Lawrenceville Main Street is seeking a sponsor for its fledgling Farmers Market, which runs on Sundays from June 26 to Oct. 2. For naming rights on the market’s signs and shopping bags, the bidding stop

By:Lea Kahn Staff Writer
Going once, going twice — sold to the highest bidder!
   That’s what Lawrenceville Main Street hopes will happen, as the right to sponsor the Lawrenceville Farmers Market has been put up for bid at online auction house eBay.
   The fledgling Lawrenceville Farmers Market is set to run every Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., beginning June 26 and ending Oct. 2. It will be held in the parking lot of the Lawrenceville Fuel Co. on Gordon Avenue.
   Participants at the farmers market are Terhune Orchards, Cherry Grove Farm, Griggstown Quail Farm, Village Bakery, Village Farms, Plumb Brook Herbs and Cherry Grove Organic Farm. Offerings range from fruits and vegetables to baked goods, cut flowers, beef, pork, lamb, poultry and game birds.
   Many of Lawrenceville Main Street’s activities depend on sponsorship, such as the Jubilee and the Music in the Park series — and the new Lawrenceville Farmers Market is no exception, said Ann Garwig, executive director of the nonprofit civic improvement organization.
   But in a new twist, the right for exclusive sponsorship of the farmers market was put up for bid on eBay — with a minimum bid of $3,000. The auction started Sunday and ends June 15. No bids had been submitted as The Ledger went to press Wednesday afternoon.
   "This is cutting-edge," Ms. Garwig said of the online auction. "Why not try this? We will be the first nonprofit group that we know of to do this in this area. We don’t know of any other ‘Main Street’ groups that are doing this."
   What’s in it for the winning bidder?
   For starters, the winner’s name will be displayed on signs at the weekly Lawrenceville Farmers Market, Ms. Garwig said. The sponsor’s name and logo will be mentioned in newspaper advertising, as well as placement on canvas bags sold at the farmers market by Lawrenceville Main Street.
   The sponsor also will be mentioned in Lawrenceville Main Street’s quarterly newsletter — which is sent to more than 2,000 homes — and on its Web site, which receives about 1,000 hits per month, Ms. Garwig said.
   The item number for the eBay auction is 5587441846. To find it, bidders should go to www.ebay.com and enter the item number in the search field located in the upper right-hand corner of the screen.
   Lawrenceville Main Street is a volunteer-driven, nonprofit civic improvement organization, Ms. Garwig said. Since the group’s inception nearly 10 years ago, the village of Lawrenceville has welcomed 44 new businesses.
   The Main Street Project — the forerunner of Lawrenceville Main Street — was formed in 1995 to revitalize the business district along Main Street. In the preceding years, one by one, businesses had closed their doors and boarded up their windows.
   Residents banded together to form the Main Street Project, and urged Township Council to apply to the state Main Street New Jersey program. The application was approved and in 1997, the Main Street Project was accepted by the state program.
   The Main Street Project changed its name to Lawrenceville Main Street in 2000.
   For more information, please contact Ms. Garwig at (609) 219-9300 or by e-mail.