Vendor highlights! New faces and constant changes
I’m not beating around the bush this week folks, let’s get right into it. This week we’re highlighting three vendors who are keeping it fresh this Spring and all year round. Whether they’re pretty new to the small business scene, like Mary Martin with JP Salsa and Carrie & Brenden with Nutty & Nice, or they’re hitting their stride like the Dorton Family with Hempin Shrooms, all three know what it means to adapt to an ever-changing market while staying true to their clear vision.
Let’s get the ball rolling with Nutty & Nice!
You may have seen these two fun, witty souls at market slinging nuts like nobody’s business, but this Saturday, April 19th, you can see and smell them like never before. Nutty & Nice has been working tirelessly to bring you an all-new shopping experience, and has been teasing the secret new development endlessly! The hype is totally worth it, but you’ll just have to come see for yourselves. Now, you may have been enjoying their nuts, but do you know their story?
Carrie and Brenden, started their business in July of 2024 and began selling at the Nolensville Farmers Market in November 2024. They moved across the country, got engaged, and started their business all within three months - but they know that good things come in threes! According to the couple, “we have independently always wanted to own our own businesses and work for ourselves. After moving to Tennessee, we realized we had a big opportunity to bring our favorite midwest candied nuts down south and share the sweet goodness with our new neighbors. Our why is simple - we understand the joy of sharing good food with friends and family, and that food is a powerful way to bring a community of people together. That's why we set out to be the very best candied nut company, all to bring a smile to your face and to strengthen the connections we have with each other.”
After taking the first steps to chase their dreams, they spent months perfecting their signature recipes (like making 73 test batches of our cinnamon + vanilla flavor & doing blind taste tests!) to get every detail right - from the temperature, organic, vegan, and gluten free ingredients, and roasting methods - just to bring the most irresistible candied nuts to middle Tennessee. Trust me when I say that these two are committed to the grind AND having fun doing it.
Now that they’re living out their dreams one sale at a time, Carrie and Brenden have realized that “It's an amazing feeling to do something creative that's fulfilling with someone you love. We have so much fun at every event and in cooking every batch, we even joke about how every market is a date for us since we get to spend so much time together working on something we're passionate about and daydreaming about our future. We're in our business for the long-haul, and have a vision to be in every major market and event across Tennessee and ultimately, the entire country. We think big, dream big, and love big, and hope that all of that intention can be shared through a bag of Nutty & Nice. Something we value the most has been meeting new people through this work. We believe that a fulfilling and happy life is rooted in having a strong and supportive community, and we're so grateful that everyone in Nolensville has welcomed us with open arms.”
We’re grateful for you, too y’all! The love, energy, and drive really does pour out of these two. It’s hard to walk away from their booth without feeling invigorated and comforted at the same time! It would make anyone go Nutty with envy if it didn’t feel oh so Nice.
Outside of their Nutty & Nice lives, you can find the powerhouse couple and good-time-havers in the gym, reading a good book, hiking to waterfalls, or dancing at a concert with friends. They’re getting married in September 2026, and plan to start their own little family soon after! “We look forward to continuing to reinvest, grow, and expand the business all for YOU, our customer, so that you have the tastiest treats that bring more joy to you and your family's daily lives. We hope you'll follow us in our journey and continue to share the goodness of Nutty & Nice with everyone you know!” If there’s a takeaway from this highlight, let it be this: Carrie and Brenden are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed in the most grounded and determined way possible.
Stop by their booth in the back corner of the outdoor section, right next to Josephine’s roasters, to see what they’ve been cooking up! You are NUT gonna wanna miss this, trust me.
Next up is Hempin Shrooms,
a mushroom and hemp product company owned and operated by Hunter and Rachel Dorton and their wonderful family! They have an exciting announcement as well, so keep reading!
Hunter and Rachel Dorton were born and raised here in Tennessee, and now have four beautiful children. They love foraging for fresh mushrooms, enjoying plenty of time with family, and spending lots of time outside growing food. Their mantra? “We Love God and We Love People.”
They started their business just a couple weeks before the pandemic shut mostly everything down. In March of 2020 they began selling their first Hemp products, and in May they began selling their first mushrooms. They have been fortunate to grow pretty much nonstop ever since they started! They joined the Nolensville Winter market in the fall of 2020 and loved our amazing community so much that they have been there nearly every week, every season ever since.
According to the Dortons, “We do what we do for one reason and one reason alone. We Love God and we Love people! In order to Love people we have found that the best way to serve our community is by providing all natural products that have a vast array of proven health benefits.” One thing I love about Hempin Shrooms is that they are committed to getting the most out of their product. From fresh mushrooms to tinctures and powders and fermented sauces, every byproduct that one could consider waste in the production process Hunter and Rachel see as an opportunity to create something new. It’s truly inspiring to see a business so thoroughly dedicated to walking the walk of working with nature instead of against it. Not only that, but Hunter is basically a walking encyclopedia for all things hempin shrooms (that is, hemp and mushrooms) and is thrilled to share any and all of the information you could ever want to know about their products and all the amazing health benefits they offer.
“We are truly blessed to be able to do what we do and we happily share that with anyone curious. We love to help people feel their best and to educate on what can be used all around us. There is so much that we have access to, provided to us by what grows out of the ground! We are so thankful to be able to be there for our farmers market communities.” In today’s day and age, we owe our lives to the wisdom and knowledge that has been preserved for thousands of years by people all around the world. After all, before modern medicine, there were healers using the healing properties of plants that modern scientists still draw from today! The Dortons understand the importance of honoring the traditions that brought us here, and witnessing the wonders that they still have to offer us.
Funny enough, they often get asked if they sell Magic Mushrooms, or even if they grow Cannabis that gets you high. “No, unfortunately, we do not have the legal capacity to be able to do those things. But we are hopeful! The future is bright when it comes to making plant and mushroom medicines available to everyone in Tennessee. In a controlled, therapeutic setting, the research shows that their benefits far outweigh any dangers or side effects, which pale in comparison to the dangers and side effects of many widely used modern medicines. Humans deserve to have access to anything that can help them. We wish we could educate on a level that would make lasting change for God’s Nature and everything she’s capable of.”
Native Tennessee passionfruit grown right in the Dorton’s garden!
Hunter and Rachel want to take this moment to share their vision of what their future will be! They are going to be going through a bit of a rebranding in efforts to reach even more people with their products and services. Hempin Shrooms will become a product line of items that contain both hemp and mushrooms, and the company will become Myco Terra Farmacy. “We believe this branding will allow us to reach a greater audience and be a great way to introduce even more products in the future. We would love to bring specially curated Herbal Tinctures, Fermented Sauces, Skin Care products, more teas, and anything else we get inspired to do. We are also looking to expand our home garden to be able to hopefully bring more plants, fruits, and veggies to market. We love growing exotic and weird varieties to bring awareness to how amazing Gods Nature is. We can’t wait to continue to provide for many years to come. Thank you to the Nolensville community for your unwavering love and support.”
When you visit the Hempin Shrooms booth, soon to be Myco Terra Farmacy, it will be impossible to deny that this family just has a lust for life. Not many folks can actively take care of customers with grace and vigor while wrangling a toddler and appeasing a growing boy at the same time, and Hunter does it all with a genuine smile. A fierce problem-solver, Hunter will prescribe you exactly what you need to feed your family, feel your absolute best, and learn something new!
Last but certainly not least is JP Salsa!
Founded by Mary Martin in January 2024, JP Salsa is making waves and taking names. Mary was inspired to start the company by her father, who made it his mission in life to give his family what he never had, and express his love for them through food.
According to Mary, “Growing up, my childhood was filled with Dad’s big breakfasts and the comfort of never going without. My dad didn’t have the same luxury. Raised in a tough home, he faced hardship early on, going without and fending for himself. By 12, he was kicked out of his father’s house. But he decided to turn things around at 18, moving to Tennessee, where he met my mother years later. Four months after meeting, they got engaged (pretty fast, right?), and proposed to her while washing dishes( He definitely is not the romantic type- Ha!). Soon after, they started building our family. Through it all, one thing was clear—Dad loves like our God does. Selfless and unconditionally.”
Mary’s goal for her business is ultimately to retire her parents, who have worked so hard to support their family. Half Mexican and half Italian, her father’s incredible tomato and pineapple-based salsa recipe blends his two cultures seamlessly and deliciously! It’s been in the family for over 30 years, a testament to how loved the blend of savory and sweet is. Offered with varying heat levels so that it can be enjoyed by anyone and everyone, Mary and her family have cherished shared it with family and friends for years, who encouraged Mary to share it with others. Now, JP Salsa’s mission is simple: to give back. They donate 10% of their profits to The Family Center, a nonprofit doing amazing work in our community.
Getting to try JP Salsa at the Nolensville farmers market is an experience to remember. Mary’s sophisticated yet simple setup invites you to try a sample and mull it over on your own, or walk in further for a chat. Getting to speak to Mary will leave you feeling warm and bright, and so will her salsa! “An important lesson in our childhood was to always have fun. After every game or recital, we were asked, “Did you have fun?” And I always did—even when things got tough. Life isn’t always easy, but we push through and look for the light.” When you talk to Mary, it’s easy to see that mindset has made its mark on her into adulthood. One of the first things I noticed when we met was something I recognized immediately - a true love for connection. She adores sharing her story and watching peoples’ eyes widen as they try for the first time something she has enjoyed her whole life. It makes it new every time and leaves everyone smiling!
“We hope you enjoy the salsa that has been a beloved part of our family for years. It’s made with the same love and care we’ve shared with each other, and we wish that same love and warmth for you. Thank you for being a part of our story, and we hope our salsa brings as much joy to your table as it has to ours.”
Check out JP Salsa’s feature in the 2023 Maury County Living Magazine
That’s all for this week folks! We’re going to have a great spread this weekend, packed to the walls with vendors, so come do your Easter shopping. Hop to it!
