What does your summer tomato look like in February??
I woke up last Sunday morning to the sight of broken glass. Someone had decided to use the back window of my truck as kicking practice. $230 later I was asking myself why people can be such jerks to fellow neighbors. But as I drank my coffee, my spirits were lifted as I began to see something beautiful unfold with the farm—members coming back to the table and bringing friends with them.
Quick recap in case you missed last week’s newsletter… I mentioned that in order for the elimination of the delivery fee to workout financially for us, we need to fill our trucks, pack more orders, and therefore, we needed members to help us grow our order volume. And you have done that.
Since the death of delivery fees, we have seen a 20% increase in orders per week. I mentioned last week that without delivery fees our average order took a 9% haircut. But with 20% more people ordering a week, this new system works and will remain financially viable for the farm. This is completely due to our members coming back and telling their friends. I thank you so much for that. The power of our group is amazing and it really restored some faith in people at a time when I needed to see it.
Here is an interesting psychological phenomenon that happens with folks statistically; when someone likes something they tell 4 people, when they don’t like something they tell 12. So when you are providing a product or service and you want folks to refer you to others, you have to be right 3 times as often as you are off.
I mention that because I know we have had “growing pain” issues in the past. I can tell you that I have never seen better quality or better accuracy of our packing than I see right now. Quality and filling orders correctly are and have been on the front burner of issues for us. I promise you that and also ask for your feedback when you see something
that you’d like to have changed. We know that there is no reason to feed more members if we cannot feed well.
Now some new faces in the window! You know that we run our business like a chef runs a pasta kitchen, by throwing spaghetti against the wall and seeing if it sticks or falls. So I would like to introduce you to some new faces.
The Mini Harvest Box. Our newest baby in the family. In her 2nd week in the lineup, the Mini Me sold 150 boxes this week. I am still floored by the demand for a smaller box. We are happy to have her in the familia and she will not be going anywhere. Truly a great addition.
The return of the Juice Box ($15). In all of the joyous emails I received from the delivery fee’s departure, there was a low roar to bring back the Juice Box. So let’s do it. The juice box will be available on the Harvest Box category. There will be a base of 5 lbs of juice carrots in every box, but other than that we will put together some fun combinations of fruits and veggies for your juicing adventures depending on what is in season that week.
The Office Harvest Box ($25). Again, another face that we have talked about for years, but finally getting our act together. This new box will be designed for the grab n go eaters who want to be healthy on the run. Use it at your house or get one happening for the office break-room. These will be seasonal and changing every week as well. The one constant for these boxes will be no cooking or forks necessary. Grab it and Eat it.
Organic heirloom corn products from the Santa Ana Pueblo. We are working with the good folks from Santa Ana Pueblo’s Mill to bring you blue corn meal, blue muffin & cornbread mix, pancake mix, and a white polenta. All of these products are certified Organic and milled locally. These will be available starting the week after next.
Farmer Monte