Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Merkle.
Lisa, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
In July of 2016, my brother-in-law shared with me a youtube video about a company that turns used shipping containers into indoor vertical farms, highlighting the sustainability aspects and I thought, “Wow, that’s amazing, we could grow fresh produce in the center of Miami, FL throughout the year!” He went onto explain that he was working on a real estate project in Overtown and they were looking at incorporating a shipping container farm on the property. I said, “can I be your farmer?”. At the time, I was living in NYC and had just been diagnosed with Stage 3 Cancer. I was heading into a pretty intense treatment protocol and contemplating my purpose and position in life. My sister took the comment quite literally and began doing research on the emerging field of Indoor Agriculture. In that process, we met a designer who had been traveling all over the world building indoor vertical farms. Coming out the other side of the Cancer diagnosis, declared healthy, I made the move to Miami. The consultant helped us build a budget and agreed to work with us. We initially explored launching as a non-profit but we couldn’t get any traction with community resources. Instead of Overtown, we found a dirt lot in Little Haiti to rent, bought all the materials with our savings and built the farm with our own two hands. We quickly learned how to farm and activated our combined skills and experience to guide the business. We started growing and distributing the most beautiful salad greens you’ve ever imagined and that was just the beginning.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Our biggest challenge turned into a blessing. Prior to Covid, our business was built on standing orders with wholesale accounts. Our entire harvest was pre-sold to Zak The Baker and Boia De. We were careful to never oversell, dealing with fresh products, we left a cushion, a surplus which we brought to the Legion Park Farmers Market every week. Cheryl and I did the market ourselves and put all our energy into connecting with our community, introducing a new kind of farming and we built a family of dedicated customers. I was driving to Zak The Baker when the city went into lockdown with 60LBS of Happiness Blend in my Subaru, the chef called to tell me that they were closing, “cancel the order.” I called Cheryl and said, “holy shit, what are we going to do with all this lettuce!” She said, “come back to the farm, I am going to send out an email blast to all the contacts we collected at the farmers market and set up an online store – we’re going to do contactless delivery to individual’s home.” I went home, whipped up a batch of the salad dressing we used to sample the greens and put it in mason jars. Together, we repackaged the greens into care packages and then delivered to homes all over South Florida. Everyone was panic purchasing food, word spread quickly and we sold out week after week. A blessing because we discovered a direct-to-consumer business and have since developed four different channels of distribution. The demand signaled us to build a larger facility – 8x the size of the first farm and producing 1500LBS a week at full capacity. And now this facility is sold out every week. Our traction in distribution, and understanding of the market is the foundation to scale the business. We are just getting started!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My professional experience in the world of art and fashion prepared me for my current career as co-founder of Imagine Farms in ways I never would have expected. At Imagine Farms, I’m primarily responsible for sales, marketing and branding. For the first two years, Chery and I did everything ourselves – I can grow, pipe plumbing, and drive a delivery truck – now, we have a team of farm techs and a leadership team which includes professional growers. In my 20’s and 30’s, I worked as the Studio Manager for Photographer Bruce Weber in NYC. And after that, an event producer tracking trends in health and well-being – I became certified as a yoga teacher and a holistic health coach. As Studio Manager, I was involved in producing shoots for commercial accounts and fashion magazines, assisting in passion projects and planning events (book launches, film premieres, private parties, etc.). It taught me to pay very close attention to the details, how to multi-task gracefully and make it happen. Working with Bruce was a kind of apprenticeship, the experience of working with a team, crafting a vision and bringing it to life. And so now I feel incredibly grateful to be alive and growing healthy food for my community in a way that is better for the planet. Bringing the vision to life and communicating the positive aspects thru the look and the feeling of our products and brand are a dream come true.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I was born and raised in Miami and I have always loved that this is an international city influenced by bright and beautiful cultures, people, food, music, and characters! Loving that the city is having a kind of renaissance and the opportunities that bring. As a citizen, I see a lot of problems that need attention. I’m focused on creating a healthier, localized food supply chain because I can – we need more people who can bring good ideas to life. I’d like to see some of the energy spent partying into creating a more beautiful city for everyone.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.imaginefarms.com
- Instagram: @imagine_farms
- Facebook: @imaginefarming
- Twitter: @imagine_farms
Image Credits
@fujifilmgirl
