By Neal Wong

The Gardens of Golden Gate Park held its first Spring Garden Market over two days in April, drawing more than 1,300 visitors to the County Fair Building next to the San Francisco Botanical Garden – despite persistent rain that organizers said kept attendance below expectations.

The inaugural market on April 11 and 12 featured 37 vendors selling plants, food, artwork and handmade goods. Community programming rounded out the event. UC Master Gardeners led a workshop that drew nearly 100 participants on Saturday, and Dave Rocha’s jazz trio performed Sunday afternoon. The market was the first of its kind at the gardens since a long-running annual plant sale was discontinued in 2019 following a nursery building renovation.

Jenn Tapler, the market’s lead organizer and the senior program manager at Gardens of Golden Gate Park, said the market was never conceived as a shopping event alone.

“It’s not just for people to buy things,” Tapler said. “We’ll have our own crafting table, some community partners – the library is going to come on one of the days. It is about coming and spending time with other people.”

Kathryn Degliantoni, a San Francisco watercolor artist who has been painting for nearly three decades and sells originals, prints, coasters and cards, said she found the market by chance – spotting a listing on the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department’s website.

“Art is a luxury sort of thing – you never know,” Degliantoni said. “In two days, I sold two originals, and it was because they both got engaged where I painted. Just a good story.”

She said the City needs more accessible opportunities for local artists to participate in events of this kind.

“We could use more of an art scene,” said Degliantoni. “I found this and submitted an application and got in – but I would do more in the City if they were available.”

Jim Schappelle attended the market on behalf of his wife’s business, Brigadeiro Sprinkles – a confectionery company specializing in “brigadeiros,” which are condensed milk and cocoa treats from Brazil. The business was born out of a gap in the market: when the family relocated from New York City to San Francisco, they couldn’t find brigadeiros for their daughter’s birthday party.

“In Brazil, brigadeiro is something that you commonly see at a birthday party, a wedding, an event of any kind of celebration,” Schappelle said. “We couldn’t find them here in San Francisco, so she started to make them for birthday parties – and then people went crazy for it and asked where she bought them. She said, ‘No, I made them.’ And the business started from there.”

He said the pop-up format is where the product, still unfamiliar to most San Franciscans, finds its audience most naturally.

“When we do events like this, Brazilians just come straight to the table – they know what it is,” Schappelle said. “But when other people try it for the first time, people really enjoy it.”

Conservation photographers Nita Winter and Rob Badger attended the market with their Winter Badger Collection, a body of work built around a 30-year project documenting California’s native wildflowers and the threat posed to them by climate change. The project has produced an award-winning coffee table book, a traveling exhibit, and a merchandise line designed to bring wildflower imagery into everyday life.

Winter said the market’s audience – drawn to the botanical garden setting and already oriented toward the natural world – made for conversations no online sales channel could replicate.

“It’s not just about sales, it’s about how you interact with other people that share your same interests,” Winter said. “You’re talking to your own community – people who love the same things.”

She said one encounter in particular captured what made the weekend worthwhile.

“We met a young woman who bought our book, and she and her boyfriend had just been out to the coast north of here and seen some wildflowers,” Winter said. “It’s a nice chance to talk with other people who are interested in the same things and share their experiences.”

Venga Empanadas, an Argentinian restaurant with brick-and-mortar locations in the Mission and Salesforce Transit Center, also had a presence at the event.

Carolina Laverde, a business partner at Venga Empanadas, said the restaurant was built on a mission that extends beyond its menu.

“Beyond the food, which is already delicious, we want to sell the experience of taking a little bite of South America,” Laverde said. “Even more important than the food is the connection we create with our customers.”

She said Golden Gate Park, with its mix of visitors from across the world, is the ideal setting for that mission.

“I’m very grateful to find these spaces where we can find a diverse kind of community,” Laverde said. “Here we feel that we belong, surrounded by beautiful nature. It’s a beautiful culture that we have here in the park.”

Many attendees said they were glad to be at the free, indoor event on the rainy weekend.

“I think it’s fun to have a market at a famous garden,” said Alexander Lordan, who was at the market with his parents, Christine and Tim, and sister Catherine.

“I loved doing the drawing and the artistic leaf rubbing with my kiddos,” Christine Lordan said.

Approximately 1,300 people were at the market, which fell short of the attendance goal of 1,500-2,000 individuals. However, Tapler, the market’s main organizer, felt it was a successful event.

“The people who did come out in the weather were deeply engaged and really helped it feel like a community event,” Tapler said. “We’re excited to host again next year with some adjustments and hopefully during a sunnier weekend.”