Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Tomm Becker. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Tomm, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

We are one of the only hoophouse or high tunnel companies that both manufactures and installs these structures. Because our roots are on the farm, we understand that the work of farming is continual triage. From planning and soil prep to seeding, planting, irrigation, cultivation, harvest, and delivery, growers take on more than they can handle every year. They have to. Since any season can mean success for some crops and failure for others, diversified vegetable farmers use crop diversity as a hedge against the unpredictable seasons. This often means that growers face an overwhelming workload at critical times of the season.

Because of the continual assessment and recalibration of work on the farm, it can be a big challenge to commit the time necessary to build the infrastructure that makes farms more resilient, consistent, and profitable. We not only deliver a high quality, easy to assemble hoophouse that includes all the materials required to complete it and have it ready to grow in, we also work alongside our growers to finish the installation in just one day. Farmers just getting introduced to our product find this hard to believe, perhaps having spent a month of Sundays building their last tunnel. They are delighted every time. It feels good.

We get it done in one day, so farmers can get back to the farming.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

We build hoophouses and high tunnels for farmers. From small backyard hoophouses to large production-scale greenhouses, high tunnels are crop protection structures that shelter high value crops from wind, rain, and cold, and enable growers to extend their season clear through the winter months.

Nifty Hoops started through a community breakfast in Ann Arbor, Michigan that raised money to build hoophouses in our local community. The idea was to invest time and money in building infrastructure that would propel our local food economy and feed our city healthy, high quality, local food in the future. We wanted to see some of the roughly $2 billion our county spends on food each year spent here in our community, supporting the livelihoods of people we know.

The idea continues to blossom. Our reach has spread across the country, and we have begun shipping our easy-to-assemble structures anywhere people grow food, as well as traveling great distances to build the infrastructure farmers need to succeed. We not only implement this critical technology for our growers, but also provide a base of support and education they need in learning the techniques of year-round growing in hoophouses and high tunnels. We form relationships with our farmers that bear fruit for communities around the country, and we’re proud of our work.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

We deliver. Many of our growers find it hard to believe that we can arrive at their farm in the morning, and by the afternoon they can have a 30′ x 120′ high tunnel built, wired up, covered and ready to grow in, complete with all the roll-up sides, automatic vents, irrigation — the works. Week in and week out we get it done, despite the challenges that every farm brings.

We’re responsive, smart, and friendly. A hoophouse or high tunnel is a big investment for a small farm, and growers want to spend all the time they need to understand exactly what they’re purchasing and how it all works. We are a small team, but we’re happy to spend as much time as it takes to help our farmers feel comfortable and confident that they are making the right decision.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Consistently performing for every client and counting on word of mouth, has always been the best way for new clients to discover us. There are some true jedi farmers out there that inspire thousands of other growers. We might not know they’re rockstars when we book their hoophouse build, but if we nail it and maintain our support for them through the years, we can count on ongoing business from them as they continue to build their operation. As their local food economies burgeon from their success, more growers follow in their footsteps, and inevitably look for the most efficient, high quality, and cost effective solution. Nifty Hoops is an easy turn-key choice.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://niftyhoops.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/niftyhoops
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NiftyHoops/
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/niftyhoops