HARRISBURG, Pa. — An online farmers market is giving local small business owners another way to serve their communities.
The founder and CEO of online marketspace Market Wagon, Nick Carter, said the service allows shoppers to buy locally without waking up early on weekends.
"Doing the farmers market online versus in-person opens access to a bigger customer base," Carter said. "There are a lot of people that love local food, but only some of those people are going to be able to spend their Saturday morning walking a farmers market in person."
The company partners with farmers and vendors across the country, helping them get food to people in their local communities.
Entrepreneurs in south-central Pennsylvania are using the service to help grow their businesses.
Theresa Mullan, the owner of Kenzaleah's Cake Cafe, served in the Army Reserves and was a traveling nurse for most of her life before she decided to start a bakery in Harrisburg.
Through Market Wagon, her cookies are delivered to homes in the 10 county area.
"You just put your product where it belongs in their totes and they take it from there and they deliver," Mullan said. "So basically, I get to do what I love to do, which is bake."
Mullan said someday she'd love to open a brick-and-mortar cafe where she can serve veterans and the homeless.