THE APPALACHIAN CENTER FOR ECONOMIC NETWORKS ACENET WILL SUPPORT A PEER LEARNING NETWORK TO CULTIVATE MARKET CAPACITY WITHIN OHIO AND WEST VIRGINIA BY IDENTIFYING AND REPLICATING SUCCESSFUL MODELS OF COMMUNITY MARKETS. THIS PROJECT WILL FOCUS ON SEVEN ESTABLISHED MARKETPLACES WHICH CURRENTLY SOURCE FROM OVER 300 FARMERS RANCHERS AND VALUEADDED PROCESSORS ENABLING MANY LOCAL VENDORS TO GAIN INITIAL ACCESS TO WHOLESALE SALES. ACENET WILL CONDUCT MONTHLY CALLS AND SCHEDULE SITE VISITS TO THESE MARKETPLACES ALONGSIDE RESEARCH TO IDENTIFY RESOURCES AND ADDRESS GAPS FOR PRODUCERS MARKET MANAGERS AND RELATED STAKEHOLDERS. AS A KEY OUTPUT THE PROJECT WILL PRODUCE A MARKET REPLICATION GUIDE ALONGSIDE VENDOR MANAGEMENT AND RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES CUSTOMER PROMOTIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE MARKET PLANS ALL SUPPORTED BY MULTIMEDIA TRAINING MATERIALS INCLUDING WEBINARS SHORT VIDEOS AND PODCASTS.