Hardy's Produce, a longstanding vendor at the Sackville Farmer's Market, has opened a retail store along a busy traffic corridor in central Moncton.

On Wednesday, Jesse Hardy was placing orders in the back room, while his mother and father—Sandy and Allan Hardy—ran the cash register and played with Jesse's young daughter.

"It's a family-owned business," Jesse said. "Everybody's involved in it. So it's been keeping us all busy."

Inside the aisles of the roughly 3,600-square-foot retail space on Mountain Road were piles of fresh produce, like granny smiths, royal galas and other kinds of apples, each marked with a handwritten sign.

Hardy's Produce on Mountain Road in Moncton is pictured on March 2, 2022. Photo by David Gordon Koch

In 2015, the Hardy family bought a small farm in Grand-Barachois, growing crops such as potatoes, tomatoes and peppers.

Hardy’s Produce previously operated a storefront in Middle Sackville and has been among the vendors at the Sackville Farmers' Market for roughly 10 years.

The farmers' market often serves as an incubator for small businesses, said market coordinator Michael Freeman.

"Every year, at least one of our market members [has] kind of propelled themselves up into that brick and mortar status," Freeman said.

Hardy's is the first example of a market vendor setting up shop in Moncton, as far as Freeman could recall. "This is a pretty big one," he said.

The new shop is the former home of Tomavo, a produce seller that expanded rapidly in recent years.

Last year, Tomavo declared insolvency, reportedly owing its creditors more than $3 million, including Hardy's and other farmers in the Maritimes.

Jesse spoke to CHMA about the new venture and the Hardy family’s experiences as farmers, including the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and rising fuel costs: