Once you have a crop in you will need to market your inventory. Go to Gourmet Restaurants and Gourmet stores. Don’t forget health food stores and caterers. Talk to the chef or owner and explain what you have. You may try to leave some of your stock at the establishment on consignment to get your customers to see the value of fresh herbs. Offer to set up a display with a poster for their window. Or offer them a “special introductory price”. You may even know some people in your area that just love to cook and would be ecstatic if they were part of your route. Exposure is key at this stage for both your name and your herbs. Go back to these potential customers often to build up your reliability.

Another important step is to write press releases that you can send to your local newspapers. Here is where the research on the folklore will come in handy. Use your gathered data on the folklore attached to herbs in the press release. These press releases will introduce you, and your products to the marketplace. Post them on the web as well, this will help you get customers from out of town. Be imaginative on the many interesting uses of fresh herbs and of course, how to find you as the source.

You may want to set up a network with other herb farms to buy from, at wholesale prices. This way if you get low on some herb stock you have a place to obtain it for your customers. Remember, they are depending on you and you want to keep their business.