The Phoenix Public Market, on East Pierce Street between North Central Avenue and North First Street, is expected to open in mid-October.
The store will carry produce, meats and prepared foods, in addition to having a wine and beer bar and a small section for rotating installations, such as cards and household items. The Phoenix Public Market will be open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Community Food Connections, a local nonprofit, manages the outdoor market and the new store that will carry the same products, said Cindy Gentry, the organization’s executive director.
Bringing the same products indoors means that the market will not have to limit the availability of produce, which makes up 40 percent of market sales, and meats to two days a week, Gentry said.
All products at the store are produced locally.
“If there is something we can’t find that we need, then we will go in concentric circles around the region to bring it in,” Gentry said.
Gentry said the food at the Phoenix Public Market is both high quality and affordable.
“I want to be able to shop there,” she said. “This is real food for real people.”
The Phoenix Public Market will be one of the closest grocery stores to the Downtown campus.
“This is something that really serves the ASU community,” Gentry said.
The Royal Coffee Bar, another local business, will be a part of the market. It will be open Mondays through Saturdays 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The outdoor market, which takes place on Wednesdays 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturdays 8 a.m. to noon, will not be ending due to the opening of the store.
The 3,800-square foot store will be limited in the amount of product it will be able to carry, Gentry said. Vendors at the outdoor market, however, can still display additional products to around 1,500 people that attend the market weekly.
Kari Bower, owner of Emelmahae Soap Co., said she thinks the opening is a good thing for her and other vendors.
“It will better the business so that vendors have a chance to get their products sold even when they’re not there,” Bower said.
Bower said it’s a good experience for the whole community.
“It’s a great place to come down and support local business,” Bower said.
Ava Bronson, journalism freshman, said that going all the way to Target is an inconvenience for her to get the food she likes.
“My mom’s a dietician, so she’s a health freak and she raised me that way,” Bronson said.
Bronson also said the Phoenix heat is another thing she’ll be happy to avoid with the indoor market.
“It can get really hot in the middle of the day under those tents,” Bronson said.
Contact the reporter at omakinso@asu.edu
