Farmer Joe’s store setting a new trend
Shoppers flocking to unique market in Cape Coral
Lee Snyder, owner of Farmer Joe’s, has been in the produce business his whole life. Although he’s had seasonal roadside markets, this is the first store of this size he’s opened.
Farmer Joe’s, located at 1401 S.W. Pine Island Road in Cape Coral, opened Jan. 18.
Snyder said he had no data and nothing to go by in anticipation of how the store might fare. Everyday is like ironing, he said, likening each issue that comes up to ironing wrinkles from a shirt.
Overall, he said the volume of shoppers in this first month has been nothing short of overwhelming.
“We knew it was going to be a busy store. You look at the demographics of the area — how many people are within a 5-mile radius, how many people are within a 10-mile radius, and we knew this was going to be a busy spot, but I think we were all a little bit overwhelmed by how busy it was in the beginning and still is,” Snyder said.
First-time shoppers are still making their way into the store, he said, in an effort to have missed the crowds, which have yet to die down.
The store is exciting, he said, describing it as a fun experience, whether you shop there or whether you work there.
Snyder maintains that his presence in the store, as the owner, likely has a great deal to do with the positive outlook shared by his employees. Being personable is a unique quality upon which Farmer Joe’s customers can rely, Snyder said. Leading by example, by working alongside his employees, is another way he tries to encourage everyone in their attitude toward work, which he said is demonstrating itself each day.
At 13,000 square feet, Snyder said he proudly maintains the largest produce department in the state of Florida. He said he doesn’t consider Farmer Joe’s a grocery store at all, but rather a farm market.
“The freshness, the quality, and the way we merchandise the products that we bring in — old-fashioned peaches and special jams and jellies. We want to show people that they can eat good, clean, healthy food and they don’t have to spend a whole lot of money, in fact, sometimes, it’s less money,” Snyder said.
The beef sold at Farmer Joe’s is treated humanely, beginning with a probiotic diet that’s easy on the digestive system of the animals being raised, Snyder said. The rotisserie chicken, which they call, Freebird, is one of the things he said, for which they want to be known.
Dealing with local farmers, he added, allows them to put the particular farmer’s name right on the signage for the customer’s reference.
“We literally go out to the farms and meet with the farmers. We take photos and show the consumer exactly, not only where it’s coming from, but what it looks like from before it even hits the store shelf. You can see that little pepper plant when it’s only 4 inches high, before it even has any foliage on it, and then the end result is what’s on the table. To me, that’s something that nobody else is doing and we are going to set the trend.
“We want to be different — that’s what this store is all about,” Snyder said.