Stephen L. Weber, the 2009 University of Baltimore Distinguished Small Business Entrepreneur
Note: This article is taken from the Daily Record's special section on the UB Distinguished Entrepreneur Awards, which will take place on April 30.
To view Stephen Weber's video profile, click here.
Like many children of farm families, Stephen L. Weber, B.S. '71, did not expect to return to work on the farm—known as Weber's Cider Mill Farm, after he completed his degree in business management at the University of Baltimore.
"When my grandfather started farming in 1908, we were a typical small fruit and vegetable farm just five miles from the city line," Weber says. "However, in the 1960s and 1970s, development around the farm was increasing, and the school board took a significant portion of our land."
This event was one of the factors that lead to Weber's decision to return to the business.
"We decided to move most of the farming operation elsewhere, but we did keep some of our original land and buildings, as well as our home," he said.
Today at his home/farm, Weber has some 800 apple trees, greenhouses with bedding plants and flowers for sale. The retail market offers corn, tomatoes, cantaloupes, watermelons and squash, along with strawberries, raspberries, peaches, blackberries, plums and other items.
"We are always trying new crops," he says. "I built a bakery on the premises and, while we use some frozen products, we do a lot of scratch baking. Our signature item is a peach cake that has become a real winner."
Weber's Farm benefits from a very loyal customer base.
"We have people who came here as kids who now come with their grandchildren. We do some advertising on cable and in the newspapers, but not a lot. Most of our business is a result of word-of-mouth.
"It's amazing to me … we have people driving from Washington, D.C. just to be here," he said.
Weber adds that farming is a seasonal business and typically they have six people on staff full-time. Nonetheless, at the peak season—July through November—he will have as many as 80 on the payroll.
Weber also notes that the few weeks before Halloween make up the second largest merchandising period in the United States.
"For 10 months of the year we are a medium-sized roadside market," Weber explained. "But during the five weeks before Halloween we are a destination."
To take advantage of that, Weber's Farm has a lot of "agritainment" events, which includes hayrides, classes in which visitors make their own scarecrows, Halloween decorations and entertainment, and of course, pumpkins and cider. Weber freely acknowledges that this change has been huge.
"I think the entertainment aspect of farming, which did not exist 30 years ago, has been largely because people now have more leisure time, especially two-income families," he notes. "And we offer wholesome activities for all ages."
Another change, Weber reports, is that in the past five years there has been an enormous increase on consuming more local food.
"People are starting to look at where their food actually comes from," he says. "And there is a tremendous interest in heirloom-seed fruits and vegetables."
In spite of the fact that Weber and his wife, Jo-Ann, did not set out to come back to the farm, they have no regrets. If anything, they run a business that is thriving, with an extremely loyal customer base that they can pass on to their children and grandchildren.
Looking back, Weber notes, "My UB business degree has benefited me greatly, and I use it all the time. I learned direct marketing, as well as the importance of a value-added product at UB. But I also learned about bookkeeping, regulatory compliances issues and employee management, among other things. Farming today—and this goes for all farms—is more about business than it is about growing, and farmers spend increasingly more time on the business end."