Podcast1

Ruth Walker and Meaghan Watson are experienced entrepreneurs who successfully launched the Meridian Monday Night Market. They started the market due to a lack of evening markets in the area and the challenges of early morning markets for vendors with kids. Their original vision for the market has been realized, offering a unique experience with music, food vendors, and a family-friendly atmosphere. They faced financial challenges but overcame them with dedication and support. The market has been a hit with vendors and attendees, with a mix of returning and new participants each year. Gerai, mes esame su Ruth Walker ir Meaghan Watson, kurie yra pasiruošęs įvartininkai. Jie yra mūsų pasiruošęs, kurie yra mūsų pasiruošęs, kurie yra pasiruošęs įvartininkai. Jie yra pasiruošęs įvartininkai. Jie yra pasiruošęs įvartininkai. This is going to be their second year running and we're super excited to hear what they have to say and learn what their process has been for setting up a new market, what they've learned and what their plans are for the future. So question one, which I'll probably edit me saying that out. Let's see here. So before we dive into the story of the Meridian Monday Night Market, Meaghan and Ruth, would you mind telling us a little bit about yourselves, giving us a little background? Yeah. So I am married with five kids and Meaghan and I have been friends for several years now and we have lived in Idaho since 2020. And I have been doing vendor events, gosh, for over 10 years as a vendor and then periodically here and there coordinating. So this is all something that I was familiar with going into and had a lot of experience and kind of knew what we wanted to see as far as what we did with the market. Awesome. Yeah, and then my name is Meaghan Watson. I am married. I have two kids. Well, me and Ruth actually started the market. We both started the market with kiddos under a year old. People thought we were crazy. So we had babies. Shouts to the fun of us last summer, and it was great. As far as a little bit of background on me, I moved to Idaho in 2023. I know, a little bit newer. And have fully enjoyed being able to make a community here and being able to just get into, like, a really family-friendly, like, settled rhythm of life. Like, I really, really, really enjoy it. As far as vendor history and, like, a little bit of, like, background on that side of things, I have been a vendor, I'd say, at least eight years at this point. I've done numerous different markets with a couple different businesses that I've had. And then I've also worked with an event coordination company here in Treasure Valley, along with working kind of event coordination a little bit more on this side when it comes to more like party planning. And so I've done a decent amount of that myself separately from any other businesses. So when we had the outlook of, hey, we could do this, between both of our vendor experiences and then our coordination experience, we're like, no, like, we could actually do this. Yeah, it sounds like you guys had the right tools and definitely the right experience. So how did the Meridian Monday Night Market get started, and what inspired you guys to create it? It started with a conversation where we were discussing a little bit about one of the markets that me and Ruth really used to enjoy going to previous to moving here. And we were missing that. It was, like, a little bit of, like, a nostalgic feel to the conversation. Interesting. And then a little bit on some of the things like that we were seeing lacking when it came to us participating in vendor markets in the Treasure Valley. Ruth, do you want to expand on that? Yeah, well, because we were literally sitting on my couch in my living room, and I had been doing another market, and we were talking about what was available in the current area, things that we liked and we didn't like. And one of the big things was that the majority of all the markets are first thing in the morning on Saturdays. And with so many of them being on the same day, you can really only attend one as a vendor. If you're wanting to go and visit them as a customer, you can maybe hit two if you time it right. So, like, for us, especially with having little kids, it's hard to get out first thing in the morning as a vendor or a customer. And we were talking about that evening market that we both used to go to and, like, how nice it was to have that time frame. And I was being a little complainy about frustrations with, you know, like, I really want to support, you know, this other market that I'm trying to do and everything, but there's being kind of stalled in the full advertising department and getting the word out as far as that it's even happening because there was great potential. But then, you know, if there's lack of follow through because people get busy or they have other things going on, whatever, and realizing that it really was not going to work for me to keep struggling out the door early Saturday mornings and not see enough of a return for that. And I already wasn't enjoying it because it was first thing in the morning. I'm trying to drag a baby and then, like, a bigger kid to help with the baby while I was there. And it was a lot. And realizing that that was just not an ideal fit for me personally. And then talking about the other market and thinking, like, man, it would be so nice to have something like that. And neither of us really being aware of anything local that fit that bill. And so we, you know, like, started chatting about it. And it was funny because Megan made an offhand comment of, like, well, you know, we could just start one ourselves. And it was really kind of just like a half joke. But I had had this just stray thought a few days prior of, man, like, I wish I had the capacity to just start one myself. So when she said that, it spiraled rapidly. Really quick because you know what's easier than getting out of the house with kids on a Saturday morning? Running your own market. Absolutely. Right? Starting your own business from scratch. Yeah, it's definitely a huge challenge. But it sounds like you guys were part of that demand. And apparently you were not alone because your market has been hugely successful. And tons of vendors signed up. Even how we came into contact with you guys was my wife was one of the vendors at your market last year. And we had such an incredible experience there. And so that's great. And I'm just happy that you guys started it. And I'm pretty sure the Meridian community feels the same way. Well, and we love it. It's been super rewarding. And it is ironic because, you know, the whole conversation started with this is not working and it's too hard on Saturday mornings. And then we load up, like Megan said, like so much more onto our plates. But I think when you find something that fits, like that is your niche, like that is what works for you and it fills a need, then everything else kind of falls into place despite little struggles along the way. Yeah, that's a great point. So when you launched the market, you know, what was your original vision for it? Eileen, go ahead. We are super happy to say that our original vision of what we launched the market is what the market currently is. It has followed track, like very well for like this is what we wanted to do and this is what we built. There's a couple things like we wish could have expanded a little bit bigger, but that's also being like a new business in your first year. But when it comes to, like there was not really any place in our planning that anybody went, oh, no, you can't do that. And so we were able to build almost exactly what our vision was. Well, that's incredible. Between the music and having the park right there and having all the food vendors, and it's really an experience coming to you guys' market, one that our family really enjoys and my kids. My kids were always asking when's the next market, when are we going back, because they just have so much fun running around, playing and meeting new people. And the vendors there are super generous, especially with my kids that are very hungry. They're always willing to sample the wares that are available. Yeah, we've been really blessed with the vendors that we've gotten. Yeah, it's amazing. So many good ones. And I bet you've got an incredible lineup coming for this year also. Is there going to be a lot of the same people coming back or are there some new faces? We have a good amount of the same people coming back, but we have a good amount of new people. I would say we're probably at either a half-and-half split or, like, a two-thirds split at the moment. Like, we have a good amount. There's a good amount of applications that we have, and there's a good amount of people that are already, like, fully signed up, paid, and ready to participate. Yeah. Okay. Awesome. So what, you know, in starting this and getting this off the ground, what have been some of the biggest challenges you guys faced? We definitely didn't quite anticipate how much of a financial investment it would be. But we were, I mean, we, again, super blessed as far as, like, what we needed came through, and we were able to get all of these different things that ended up being costs, like cones and extra signage and cones, so many things that we didn't, you know, at the start think, oh, put this on our list because we're going to need it, you know, because there was a lot of, as we started that first, I would say probably the first four to six weeks of the market, we were adjusting and getting more things that we needed in order for everything to run smoothly and, you know, like, safely and well and, like, all of that. Definitely. So that was interesting. Let me give a shout-out really quick. I think I texted her at least every week in the first beginning of the market, hey, we need six more no parking signs. Hey, we need loading and unloading signs. Hey, we need rules that, like, she has done, I'm pretty sure we've gotten, like, next day emergency last minute, like, can we add this because we need it, like, now. Right. Sounds like you've got to think on your feet a lot. And just to you guys' credit, I want to compliment both of you because my wife and I just starting out as vendors last year, we never would have known that that was your first year running the market. We both had a ton of great things to say and just were super blown away how organized it was. And my wife was just raving. At every other market we went to, we were just raving about you guys. So super surprised that it was just getting started at that time. It did not. It definitely seemed like a. Yeah, definitely. So we're excited for you guys to definitely keep it going, and I think you guys are going to have a lot of success with it. So moving on, I think every organizer is going to experience moments like that where it's we're missing this or we're missing that, and thinking on your feet. And it's awesome that you guys have resources and people that you could rely on. Have you found any new, you know, other than Optola, of course, have you found any new resources or help that has come alongside you guys? Quick books. Yeah, quick books. We have made so many connections. So it's exciting to go into a new season, really feeling more established with local connections, with things like QuickBooks that has eased the process of invoicing. I mean, like there's so many things that I feel like are going to be so much smoother. I think a lot of entrepreneurs will relate to that comment about the QuickBooks because that's when you first get started, that's one of the biggest things is knowing how to organize your income and your outflows and seeing it on paper and making sure things are moving in the right direction. Well, as far as one of our biggest challenges in the early days also was, like, we didn't anticipate the conversation in Ruth's living room didn't exactly have us having employees. As we got farther in the planning, we're like, wow, we can't do this by ourselves. Like, we need employees. And now we have a really well-rounded, amazing team of people that work with us. But that was never, like, the first thought. And so learning about, you know, the Workman's Comp and, like, how to do taxes and, like, all of those things when it comes to, like, wow, we haven't, like, I've never ran a business where I had W-2 employees before. And so learning that side of it has been quite wild. Like, there's so many things that, like, didn't necessarily, not necessarily we didn't think about, but also we didn't think about. Like, whoa, we're learning, oh, and did you know that you need this also and this and that. Yeah. It can definitely. I look forward to every week to, like, something new. So this is interesting. Yeah, definitely taking on employees is such a huge step, and it's so different from just running it with just the founders. And the amount of work that goes into setting up everything that needs set up for that could be a full-time job itself. So trying to start a business while also trying to learn how to run the employee side of things. So, fortunately, you got that figured out. So this next year it will be a little light in your workload. Yeah. Our other bigger challenge that we face in the early days is visibility. As far as starting a new business, people, they don't know your name. You don't have, especially before the market actually started, that one month before our market started being one month from the time that me and Ruth had the idea to our first market kickoff date, which was wild. But in that first month, it was really, like, hustling as hard as we could to make sure that our name was getting out there, that people were aware that the event was happening. There was different Facebook and, like, Instagram things. Like, sometimes your post would get a ton of visibility, and sometimes it would get nothing. And so that was one of, like, the really big struggles. Also was trying to figure out, okay, what avenues for marketing is going to work best for us, what, you know, boosting various different posts or various different events, like where to allot advertising finances for. And that's something that is ever-changing, and we are continuing to figure out. Yeah. I think you and every other business is constantly asking themselves that question, and the answer is constantly changing, because people's attention is so short and it moves quickly. So, I mean, it seemed like whatever you were doing, it was working, though, because the aisles were full of people most of the time that we were there. So that's awesome. And hopefully, you know, this – obviously I don't know how much viewership we'll get or how many listeners we'll get on this, but if it brings in some more people, then fantastic. We appreciate it. So going back to that first market, the night before and then the market, let's talk about that. How did it go? So I think on the night before we both had complete, massive anxiety panic attacks because we were just so concerned that all the effort that we had put in wasn't going to be enough. I mean, I think in our brains we knew that we had done everything possible, but, you know, it's like we went and we did all our pre-marking out of the spots at the park and set everything, like, got as much as we could set up the evening before on Sunday, and then driving home, you know, I know that I turned to look at my husband and went, oh, my gosh, what if no one shows up? What if no one shows up? I think that was, like, one of the worst feelings ever. We have done everything we could possibly do, but I can't control if people choose to come and park in our parking lot and get out of their cars. Right. I think people are hungry for socialization, though. I will say that that first kickoff date was incredible. I mean, the community showed up and our vendors showed up. We had a few mishaps, but nothing that actually impacted the market as a whole. And it was incredible. That was such an incredible first market day. That's awesome. I'm so glad that it wasn't a tragedy and people did show up. It has to be. You know, I think people want to get behind small businesses and events and things like the Meridian Monday Night Market, help make a community somewhere you want to be. So I don't think you guys were ever at any fear of that happening, and I think this next year is going to be even bigger. That is one of the things that I truly absolutely adore about Idaho, is that there is a spirit of community and a spirit of supporting locals, because you don't find that everywhere, and that is huge here. And I really love that people are genuine in their efforts to do that. Yes. Yes, they truly are. And we've encountered the same thing on our end of the businesses that we've been involved with. So moving on. All right, what has been one of the most rewarding moments since you guys started your market? I don't know, but I just have one moment. I think the community that we have built, like, I will be forever thankful for the connections and the friendships that I made this past year. And when the market has not been running, I have rang into some of the vendors at grocery stores, at parks, at various different places, just living life, and it is always such a warm welcome and, like, you know, let's talk and, you know, chit-chat and catch up. And I thrive on that. Like, I love knowing people and selflessly being part of people's lives. And so going to places and having people, like, show up in random places that I actually know them, also with moving here and having still being a new person in the community, I don't have that big of a community around me. And so using the market and building the community in that way and then having these friendships develop, like, that has probably been one of the biggest blessings for me, both personally but also business-wise for the market. Yeah, I would agree that that has been definitely the most rewarding overall because, like, I was looking at that question kind of thinking about it and really, again, like, I don't think there's been just, like, a moment, but just getting to the end of the season and having built all those relationships and seeing it be an overall success for both all the vendors and the community, like, providing a space for vendors to come and build their business at and then having a safe, warm, welcoming place for families to come out to and then, you know, on top of it all, we have these amazing friends that we have made through it. And so I think just the whole thing as a whole has been incredibly rewarding. Yeah, no, definitely. You know, my wife and I just being at your events last year and meeting other vendors, relationships forming, and just in a world where people less and less, they know who their neighbors are, they don't know who their neighbors are, this definitely provides an opportunity, and that's why my wife and I are so passionate about events like yours that are bringing people together and tearing down those barriers that exist within communities because it doesn't matter who you are, you're going to, especially if you have children or even if you don't, you're going to get excited about coming together and seeing people's crafts, seeing people's homemade baked goods, seeing their creativity on display. It's just, you know, on those days, those summer days, where you're like looking at your wife or looking at your husband and thinking, what are we going to do today? You know, since it's Monday, oh, it's a bummer the weekend ended, but you know what, there's still something going on tonight we can go to. And it really is just, it enhances life. And I'm really hoping that people, the awareness of these markets just grows and grows. Yeah, definitely. As for your vendors, is there a particular vendor story that sticks out to you guys? Like what impact have you had with vendors? Do you have a vendor that really stands out? We were able to watch a lot of vendors start their businesses this year. You guys, you had, I would say probably at least safely, safe numbers, at least six different vendors that came to our market, with our market being the very first market that they've ever participated in with their business. And to be able to create that for them and have them feel kind of secure in like, yeah, we can do this, and we see that this is going to be good for us, is a huge compliment within itself. But we strive a lot to have there not be a lot of overlap in our vendors. We acknowledge that like sourdough, if you only have one sourdough vendor, they're going to sell out. You need to have a couple, but you don't need to have 15. And so one of the things that we really try to do with our market is make sure that we don't have a lot of vendor overlap, which provides a lot of ability for the vendors to show up themselves with their business and be able to, oh, I don't know what I'm looking for. They can make a name for themselves because they're going to create their customer base because they're not constantly sitting there and competing against the person next to them or across the aisle or, you know. Exactly. Because I've done that. Like I've taken my honey, my infused honey, and gone to markets, and there's three, four other vendors there that are also carrying honey. And by the time they get over to my booth, they're like, oh, well, I already bought some. And those have been the times, like really the only times, where I have not done well in a booth. And so you can like see how much that impacts vendors. And they shouldn't be sitting there hoping that the customer chooses to buy from them versus the other vendor that has like exactly the same thing as them. Definitely. And so that was one of the things that we talked about in the very beginning of like we, this is not a money grab. We're not just going to accept anybody and everybody and pile the aisles so that, you know, have a high turnover of vendors because that's not what we're looking to do. And so it's, you know, that's been something that we've really strived to make sure. And, you know, speaking of the sourdough, it's funny because in the beginning we had the different sourdough vendors and they were all doing something a little different. And it kind of morphed through the season. But even like at the end of the season where they were offering the same things, they were different types of things. And so like people would go to one of them for like their favorite scones, even though multiple of them had scones, they were all different types of scones. And so like someone would be like, oh, I'm going to Scone Show because I love their scones. I'm going to Scone Show because I love their bread or their cookies or, you know, whatever. And so they were able to develop that repertoire with their customers and have their unique goods available. And people were able to say, oh, well, that's my preference, so I'm going to go grab that from them and then this from that one and, you know, really showcase their individual styles of baking, if you will. Definitely. And so that's something that we really pushed for. Yes, for sure. And you can definitely tell the difference between an event that has a good balance and one that is not balanced. And there's far too much of one particular type of vendor or there's just a total absence of something that people are coming and looking for. But going back to what we were talking about and how these markets can be and are just a birthplace of new businesses, it's fun to kind of sit back and think about the longstanding effects. Like any one of these small businesses could become something huge, and this could just be the beginning of their story too. So when you're creating an event, when you're an event organizer like you guys are, I mean, you just don't know the impact you're having on people's lives and where that could lead for them. So it's fun to think about. And I think it really inspires even a lot of the people that come to the market that maybe would not have considered becoming vendors, but they have this product that they make or they have a hobby that they want to turn into a business. It gives them that outlet to get started. So I think that's amazing and it's really powerful. Yes, I would agree. It's been really rewarding to be able to provide that venue for people. So other than the incredible balance and the amazing vendors, to you guys, what makes your market unique compared to maybe some of the other markets that you've been to? I really think that our market is not another type of thing that you have on your to-do list. Like, yes, you may come to our market and you may pick up some groceries while you're there and you're getting dinner while you're there, but it's not a – You have a different atmosphere. You know what? It is a come and stay a while and enjoy the community, not a quick pop in, grab what you need, and pop out. While you can definitely do that, like you can definitely come to the market and be there for 15 minutes and leave if you would like. There is nobody stopping you. But you have the ability to come, get dinner. We have the beer garden. You have the playground for the kids to play. We have the balloon artist who gives out free balloons for the kids. Like it is really a time to slow down a little bit and to be with your community and take time as a family together. Absolutely. The atmosphere there is incredible, and you really have to go and experience it yourself to really get the full effect. But, yeah, I absolutely agree with everything you just said. Let's see. All right. So, you know, what advice would you guys have or would you give to someone considering starting their own market or community event such as the one you guys have created? Just do it. Just do it. Just do it. Our biggest phrase has been, what's the worst they can do? Say no. Because if saying no is the worst answer that you can get and you're stuck exactly where you are, what harm? You know, so we went into this market. We had the idea that night, and the next day we walked into City of Meridian, and we went, hey, we want to do this. How do we do this? And, like, we were expecting somebody somewhere to be like, no, you can't do that. Who are you? And not a single time did anybody actually tell us no, and now we have a thriving market. So what's the worst they can do? Say no. Absolutely. I think if more people thought that way and stopped letting fear get in the way of what they're doing, you know, if you're out there and you're thinking, man, I want to be part of this or I want to set up a booth at one of these events, you know, get in touch with the Meridian Monday Night Market and don't be afraid. Just do it. I mean, your risk is very low, really. Just give it a go. Absolutely. The other thing as far as somebody considering starting their own market or event would be confidence. If you are confident about your event, that it is going to go well, that it is going to be great, not overpromising. I think there's a fine line in between overpromising things that you know that you can't guarantee and just confidence that it's going to be a great community event. Going into it, like, your vendors really feel your belief in it. And if you don't have a belief in what you are doing, then your vendors are going to go, oh, maybe I don't want to do that because, I mean, she doesn't even sound like it's going to be good. Yeah. You know, and especially with starting a business, especially when you've never actually done the first event, going at it with confidence and being like, we know this is going to turn out good. Like, no, we can't guarantee your sales, especially if the vendors are sitting there like on their phones and not talking to the public. I can't promise that people are going to choose to spend money with you if you don't say hi. But when it comes to someone starting their own market, like having that confidence and having the relationships, like building those relationships in the beginning with your vendors too. When you become somebody that your vendors feel like they can actually have a conversation with and you are not just somebody there to kind of like rule them and tell them exactly what they can and can't do at the market, but you are a friendly face, like I think that that goes a long way in building the start of your events. Definitely, definitely. I have been told to be a chatty Kathy at the end of markets because I definitely enjoy letting our paid employees pack up while I go and build those relationships. It's hard work, you know. I know this is a lot. Some of us work with our hands, some of us work with our mouths, talking to people and, you know, sharing all the things and learning all the things. And it does come back and it is rewarding. You know, I'll go over and I'll join. Okay, so what are we talking about tonight? It's good, you know. We have the consistent vendors who do hang around. I mean, I think I said something. If there are vendors that are hanging around to have a conversation. We have some vendors that have helped us finish packing up our booths at the end of the night, and they leave the market at the same time as us because we just enjoy spending time together. Yeah, I think that's definitely a good sign. But you don't see it at all events. The vendors, because they're, you know, if the market's good, they're busy the entire time. But they're all just like-minded entrepreneurs and they want to get to know each other. So, yeah, definitely they'll be hanging out after until the sun goes down and the conversations are great. So looking forward, you know, what goals or visions do you guys have for the future of your Meridian Monday Night Market? Where do you see this in five years from now if we look back? Five years. That, you know, I don't know that I can even picture that at this point. That's fair. I mean, it looks wonderful. Like I truly believe that in five years it's going to be absolutely incredible and probably beyond anything that we could even imagine right now. But I know that we've talked about as far as the future, what we want to see is we want to make sure that we are building this market for consistency and success and attendance as much as we can and just continuing to improve it in any way possible. So, like, this coming season we're working on bringing out more interactive activities, especially in the fall, to help keep up the momentum of attendance, like when kids go back to school and stuff. And so little things like that we're always looking at doing, so growing in quality and continuing to really create that community hub that says, oh, it's Monday, like we have to go. Yeah, definitely. Well, so that about rounds it out for us. Megan and Ruth, thank you for being here and everything you're doing to create opportunities for vendors and for the community and bringing people together. I think a lot of people are going to be excited to learn more about you two and how Meridian Monday Night Market came to be. And I just know that this year is going to be awesome for you guys because your success and the success of all your vendors runs together. So I think those partnerships and that relationship is just going to bring you guys a ton of success. And most importantly, people need to get out there and come to the Meridian Monday Night Market and just enjoy it for what it is, which is a great place for you and your family to be on a Monday night as it warms up. And I can't think of anything better to do. So, once again, thank you guys, and we will see you at the next market. Absolutely, we're excited. Thank you so much for having us on the show. Yes, absolutely.