Local Honey Market Caters to Local Customers and Suppliers

By Alyssa Schnugg

News editor

alyssa.schnugg@hottytoddy.com

After falling in love with a small, neighborhood market in Salt Lake City as newlyweds, Jeffrey and Sarah Hollis kept their dream of owning something similar in Oxford alive for more than 25 years.

On Friday, their new store, Local Honey Market held its first Open House to introduce itself to the Oxford community.

The store had a soft opening in September and Sarah Hollis said the store has received a warm welcome from customers and local farmers and food suppliers.

“We just always had it in the back of our minds that we wanted to do something like this, and support local farmers and local businesses and bring a little market to a pocket of Oxford,” Sarah Hollis said.

The store is located on the northeast corner of the new roundabout at Anderson Road and West Oxford Loop along the Pat Patterson Parkway.

Jeffrey, originally from Dothan, Alabama, met Sarah, an Oxford native, during college and they have lived in Oxford since 1998.

They lived out west for about a year shortly after being married before returning home to Oxford 24 years ago.

Seeing the Oxford Commons area as an up-and-coming area, Jeffrey Hollis opened up the Marketplace at Oxford Commons gas station and convenience store which quickly became known for its hot breakfast and lunch platters, sandwiches, chicken salad and pimento cheese spreads.

The Hollises opened their second Marketplace on the roundabout a year ago. Local Honey is a separate parcel located next to the Marketplace.

“We knew the Commons would be developing and open that store trying to get ahead of it,” Sarah said. “And when we heard this road (Pat Patterson Parkway) was going to be built we put an option on this property. It took a while before we could build, but we had a plan.”

That plan included creating more than just a place to grab some bread or eggs – which you can do at Local Honey – but making it a place where local people helped support local farmers and businesses.

The store stocks its shelves with locally-made products, like spices, jams, barbecue sauces, olive oils and of course, honey.

“We have three kinds of honey – two are made here in Lafayette County and one is made in Union County,” Sarah said.

The store has local produce from Clear Creek Farms, Brown’s Family Dairy and meat products, beef from Faulkner Farms in Taylor, freshly made bread and sweet rolls and a large variety of frozen meals from Vito’s Marketplace in Leland.

“We also prepare food here,” she said. “Chicken salad, pimento cheeses, three-bean salads, grab-and-go salads so we can serve all the businesses close by. We really want to cater to the area.”

Hollis said some future plans include adding more local food, coffee, plants and local artwork.

The store is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Saturday. For more information, visit Local Honey Market on Facebook.