Shopping Local Made Easy With Genuine MS® Store
In partnership with: Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce
There’s been a movement afoot – one where consumers are eager to know where products are made. Not only do they want to purchase American-made products that benefit the nation, but they want to support local businesses in their communities. With the Genuine MS® Store, now a fixture at the Mississippi Farmers Market in Jackson, they can do just that.
Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson visited the Indiana State Fair and was inspired by a store completely stocked with items created by businesses in Indiana. He knew that Genuine MS® producers would benefit from an event like this, so he brought the idea back home to Mississippi.
See more: Shop Local With This Missouri Grown Gift Guide
Connection to Consumers
The Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce created Genuine MS® to make it easy for consumers to find products proudly created or produced by Mississippi farmers and entrepreneurs. “Genuine MS® has grown to over 220 members and we get to know them on a personal level,” says Lane Milton, Genuine MS® brand manager. “We are able to make connections between other Genuine MS® businesses and help them with all of their business growth, even on the smallest level.”
As a way to promote the vast array of products grown, raised, crafted and made in the state, the Genuine MS® Store was first launched at the Mississippi State Fair in October 2020. The store was meant to be a pop-up store for the fair, but the response was overwhelming. Staff and visitors of the fair enjoyed the one-stop shop of all things Mississippi like rice, popcorn, pottery, jewelry, shortbread cookies, salsa, honey and leather goods to name a few.
From Pop-Up to Permanent
Once the fair came to a close, the store was moved to the Mississippi Farmers Market (again temporarily) in hopes of selling the remaining products during the holiday season. It was a perfect fit for the market shoppers. They were able to supplement their normally purchased items of local produce, meat, dairy and eggs with other Mississippi value-added foods and gifts from the store.
But it wasn’t until they took a two-week hiatus to open up a pop-up shop and concession stand at the 2021 Dixie National Livestock Show and Expo that Milton and her team realized how popular it was.
“Consumers let us know that they missed the opportunity to shop at the store each week,” she laughs about their absence at the farmers market. “They would come into the store and finish up their shopping experience with grits and flour, and we had beef jerky and candles and pottery and just lots of different things.”
See more: Genuine MS® Program Benefits Businesses Across Mississippi
Genuine Finds
In addition to the pop-up store, a Genuine MS® Concession Stand was open during the youth livestock events for exhibitors and their families. The store was a convenient way for them to grab snacks and drinks between shows. Milton connected with Doug Eltzroth, the owner and founder of Northshore Specialty Coffee. There wasn’t a coffee supplier, so she asked the fellow farmers market vendor and Genuine MS® member if he was willing to set up and brew coffee for the livestock events.
“I just loved the concept,” Eltzroth says of the Genuine MS® store and program. “There’s just some great creativity, some great food. You walk in the store, and you’re surprised by how much is local and how much is really genuine Mississippi.”
Although Eltzroth did not grow up drinking coffee, as a herdsman’s son in Ohio, he did grow up going to fairs and remembers seeing a plethora of items made in the Buckeye State. Now a Mississippi resident, the chaplain brews his premium Arabica beans in Jackson with his son and son-in-law. They expanded from roasting in their church to opening an on-campus shop at Belhaven University, and now Northshore Specialty Coffee is sold in a number of Kroger stores and one Whole Foods Market, and as the roaster for Mississippi Cold Drip, their collaboration is in more than 70 stores.
“People are very aware through COVID-19 and all that, that you’ve got to support the local mom-and-pop shops, and everything in Genuine MS® is definitely small business, and even on the small side of small business,” Eltzroth says.
Brewing Up Business
Locals are more than willing to support Mississippi creators. Now, Genuine MS® is a permanent fixture at the Mississippi Farmers Market, and Milton is asked repeatedly to open pop-up shops at fairs and conventions. To keep expenses low, she scours Pinterest for DIY ideas and has enlisted her teammates to build pallet shelves and baker’s racks to create a rustic general store. Meanwhile, Eltzroth is cooking up a new coffee brew aptly named “Fairgrounds.” The Genuine MS® team has been a part of the taste-testing process to get it just right.
They’re also planning on participating in the 2022 Dixie National Livestock Show – but they will definitely not be closing down at the farmers market this time.
“Everybody wants their grits and their flour and their tea and their coffee and their honey!” Milton laughs.
Learn more at genuinems.com.