With less than 72 hours before the opening of South Anchorage’s newest market, the duo behind the venture took a midday breather from juggling the last-minute logistics.
Michaela Teater and Zaneta Stetsunova, longtime friends with track records for fostering community events in Anchorage, partnered to open the Sunday Fresh Market at O’Malley this past Sunday.
“We’re the perfect duo,” Stetsunova said of her partnership with Teater. “She’s all about the arts and the creators. And of course, my thing is food.”
Teater, the owner and artist behind Alaska Concrete Collective, showcases her colorful, geometric designs at local galleries like Dos Manos and is a veteran vendor within the city’s market scene. Exhibiting her work has opened doors to artistic opportunities and lasting connections, and Teater hopes to do the same for the new market’s vendors.
After becoming a mother of two, Stetsunova shifted from the corporate world to a career in building community spaces for vegan and veg-curious locals. A co-founder of Anchorage VegFest, Stetsunova, who is known on Instagram as @theplant_basedmama, is passionate about promoting health and wellness and increasing access to local plant-based foods.
“We wanted to create something that was really rooted in community,” said Stetsunova.
Through the years, Stetsunova said she and Teater have separately entertained thoughts of creating a community gathering place. They decided to team up earlier this year to realize that dream, leveraging their community building endeavors to create the kind of space they wanted to see in Anchorage. A Sunday market was a hallmark of that vision.
While Anchorage is home to a dozen or so markets, only a handful are open on Sundays, and even fewer serve the Southside. As parents, Stetsunova and Teater have both struggled to find free, family-friendly entertainment opportunities on Sundays. When her son was young, Teater recalls the end of the weekend often being stressful.
“I always wished that I had a community place to take him that wasn’t super expensive, and offered things that were a little more local,” she said.
The Sunday Fresh Market at O’Malley debuted Sunday from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at 11111 O’Malley Centre Drive. About twenty vendors, from crochet artists to cottage bakers, gathered for opening day. Every weekend this summer will feature a fresh line-up of vendors. In the spirit of creating an all-ages atmosphere, local musicians like Pepper Kit and DJ Lloyds Noize will perform each week, and Ms. Lacey of Nimble Lark Music Studio will host a live children’s music hour at noon.
Teater said their goal is for the market to support growing businesses that represent the diverse cultures, food, art, and music in Anchorage – some of which haven’t had as many opportunities to share their products.
“That is a big part of our mission; access,” she emphasized.
Although the Sunday Fresh Market is at the same location as the South Anchorage Farmer’s Market, Teater said they have never thought of that as a competition.
“We want people to attend both.” she said. “We just feel like we’re growing the weekend.”
Kaitlin Armstrong is an Anchorage-based writer and audio producer. She hosts The Alaska Myth, a podcast about the myths that shape how Alaskans view our history and ourselves.