Mal’s Fresh Produce is bringing delicious, farm-picked produce to Morgantown.
Mallory Moholt loves fresh fruits and veggies. So much so, in fact, that she started her own produce stand here in Morgantown, aptly named Mal’s Fresh Produce. But a vegetable stand wasn’t always in the game plan for the newly minted marketing student. “COVID-19 had hit, and I had just graduated college. I was just trying to find something to do,” the young entrepreneur says. “My family was involved in produce markets growing up, and there was a big demand here. I just rounded up what I knew and decided to throw myself into it.”
Moholt says the stand she opened in 2020 was a quick success. “I couldn’t sit down to drink water, we were so busy!” But it was the good kind of busy, the kind that had her thinking bigger and better than ever. “I immediately started telling people we were going to start a store after the stand. I had a bigger vision of what the community needed and wanted, which was access to local and fresh produce.” And open a storefront she did.
At Mal’s, you can find a little bit of everything. Local meats, wild-caught fish, fresh eggs, cheeses, breads, ciders, a huge variety of fruits and vegetables, locally canned goods—the list goes on and on. For Moholt, it’s all about offering fresher alternatives that consumers know the origins of. “I focus on what people are putting in their bodies. What are they using on a daily basis, and how can they make the switch to local items?” Just peruse the store’s social media, and you’ll catch a mouthwatering glimpse of some of the goods available.
Starting a new business has its ups and downs, and, despite its success, Mal’s Fresh Produce has had to overcome its fair share of obstacles. “It’s been a big challenge being a young woman with a big vision and getting people on board with that,” Moholt says. “That’s what business is about—becoming resilient and staying strong. It’s hard to run a small business. But when you have the support like we do in Morgantown, it makes it worth it.”
The store—located at 312 Old Cheat Road—opened its doors for the season April 2 after months of winter preparations. Find Mal’s on Facebook to see what new products will be flowing in.
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