There’s a new spot in Brookfield to source farm fresh produce, meats and a wide variety of products from local Wisconsin producers and makers.

Farmers Market To Go, 17000 W. Capitol Dr., is a hybrid grocer/farmers market concept that operates on a model that makes local products more affordable and accessible to local customers while ensuring a higher profit margin for vendors. Ultimately it’s a win-win for everyone. 

The market is located between the Better Knife & Kitchen Store and The Salt Spot. It’s comprised of shelving, freezer and refrigerater space that’s filled with fruits, vegetables, meats, cheeses, honey, maple syrup, bakery items, pickles, preserves, dried goods and a nice selection of heat-and-eat items from local makers and restaurants. 

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Currently the market has over 40 vendors. Among them are chips and salsa from That Salsa Lady (Milwaukee), mushrooms from River Valley Ranch (Burlington), produce from Geneva Lakes Produce (Spring Prairie), meats from Kettle Range Meat Co. (Milwaukee) and Belgian liége waffles from Press. (Milwaukee).

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There's also pasta from Food Fantasies (West Allis), chia cups from Chialicious (Milwaukee), pot pies and shepherd’s pies from Kelly’s Pot Pies (East Troy), kombucha from Shoe’s Brew (Jackson) and a variety of ready made Indian dishes, frozen curry sauces and crispy na’an crackers made by Ruta Kahate of Ruta’s Fresh Indian Fare (Milwaukee).

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There's also freshly baked items including focaccia, scones and cookies from Brill & Bell Bakery in Thiensville.

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Building the market

The Farmers Market To Go concept is the brainchild of local entrepreneur Alena Joling.

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Joling grew up on a Wisconsin farm and operated her knife-sharpening business, Moleta: Artisan Sharpening, at farmers markets for over a decade. In 2018, she began leasing a space on the second floor of the Capitol Drive building where Saloon on Calhoun with Bacon operated before closing in 2022.

When the popular bar and entertainment venue closed, it freed up a significant amount of retail space in the building. Michelle Dietz, a Madison-based knife sharpener and friend who also operates Wisconsin Cutlery & Kitchen Supply had been encouraging Joling to add a retail component to her sharpening business as an added revenue stream. And Joling took the opportunity to expand her operations.

In 2024, the two business owners partnered to open the Better Knife & Kitchen Store, a kitchen supply store that boasts the largest selection of kitchen knives in Southeastern Wisconsin and in-house sharpening while you shop by Moleta: Artisanal Sharpening.

Just months later, Joling also secured the licensure and opened a second location for The Salt Spot, an Oconomowoc-based wellness business operated by Ashleigh Nowakowski. Located to the south of the Better Knife & Kitchen store, The Salt Spot is also a source for locally made candles, bath salts and other health and wellness products.

“From the time I moved my business here, I had it in the back of my head that I’d eventually like to buy the building and host a farmers market on Sundays in the parking lot,” says Joling, 

“But it was when I was sitting in the salt caves at The Salt Spot in Oconomowoc that I came up with the concept for Farmers Market To Go. My vision included a new business model that would support farmers year-round creating a commercial kitchen to help local makers. Ultimately, I saw it as a way to complement my business while also helping farmers and artisan producers.”

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A collaborative operation

Joling says she’s always been fascinated by the cooperative model and – alongside the knowledge she gleaned from her degree in philosophy and political science – it has shaped the way she’s operated her businesses. It also made sense for Farmers Market To Go, a collaborative effort that Joling got off the ground with the help of advice from entrepreneur Angela Mo of That Salsa Lady.

“Each vendor contributed to their portion of the market's build-out,” says Joling. “And they contribute to monthly expenses to run the market. But they keep 100% of their profits so they are making more money than they’d typically make at a farmers market.”

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“Ultimately, the market is about making local food more accessible and giving producers a place to sell their products during the off-season,” says Joling. “But it’s also about making that connection between people and their food. Maybe it’s from growing up on the farm, but knowing what’s in your food these days is so important, especially if you want to take control of your health.”

Joling says it’s taken a great deal of work to get the business off the ground and there has been much volunteerism involved to make it happen. But she says it has paid off.

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“When we pool our resources, things are easier and we’re so much stronger when we work together,” she says. “We still have some logistics to work out, but so far this has been the most successful business I’ve ever started. Not only do I think this model can work, I think it can be replicated in other places.” 

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Joling says the market is at just over half-capacity and could accommodate about 30 more vendors, so she's accepting inquiries from farms, restaurants and small artisan businesses that have the capacity to sell wholesale.

She has also partnered with local chef and culinary teacher Jenny Lee of Kiuda who will be building out a commercial kitchen on the lower level of the property where the Saloon on Calhoun kitchen was located. The goal will be to create a rentable space that could be used as a production kitchen and a place to host cooking classes.

And that’s not the only area for growth.

“We’ve already heard from farmers that they have greenhouses where they could grow produce during the winter months if they had somewhere to sell it,” Joling says. “So by next year it’s also likely that we’ll have more produce all year round.”

Farmers Market To Go is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Additional information about Farmers Market To Go is available at farmersmarket2gowisconsin.com.