I once stood in front of hundreds of people and accidentally insulted every single one of them....

I once stood in front of hundreds of people and accidentally insulted every single one of them.

A few years ago I was asked to give a talk at the NMTF Conference, a room full of hundreds of market traders from all over the country.

I'd put loads of effort into it. I'd practised it, timed it, changed bits, rewritten bits, and convinced myself I knew exactly what I was doing.

I even had a joke to open with.

Now, looking back, I'm not sure whether that was a brilliant idea or a terrible idea.

I walked onto the stage, grabbed the microphone and confidently said...

"Most people think market trading is just old men selling fruit and veg."

And then I carried on. For about half a second. Because then my brain caught up with my mouth. I looked around the room. Hundreds of faces staring back at me. And it suddenly hit me...

I was standing in a room full of market traders.

Actual market traders.

The exact people I'd just described.

My first thought was:"Oh no." My second thought was: "Well done Libby. You've managed to offend an entire room before you've even introduced yourself properly."

I genuinely started preparing my apology in my head. I was already thinking about how I could somehow explain what I meant without making it worse. But then...The room erupted. People were laughing, nudging each other, smiling and shaking their heads.

Not because there is anything wrong with selling fruit and veg. Quite the opposite. Those traders are the heartbeat of a market, and every market would be poorer without them. They laughed because they knew exactly what I meant.

That is the stereotype.

If you tell someone you're a market trader, they don't usually picture a young person building a brand. They don't picture someone designing products, creating a business plan, learning marketing, taking risks and trying to turn an idea into something real.

They picture Del Boy with a crate of cabbages.

And the funny thing is...

I probably thought exactly the same before I became one. If you'd told me a few years ago that I'd spend my weekends loading a van at stupid o'clock, putting up a gazebo in whatever weather Yorkshire decided to throw at me, standing behind a table full of honey and talking to complete strangers about bees...I'd have laughed.

Yet somehow, that's exactly where Herd & Hive was built. It started with a folding table, a few jars of honey and the hope that people would stop and have a chat. And that is the magic of markets. They give small businesses somewhere to start.

Before we had thousands of followers.

Before people recognised us from social media.

Before we had customers travelling to see us because they'd followed our journey online.

We had markets.

We had real conversations with real people. We had customers picking up a jar of honey and asking questions. We had people telling us what they liked, what they didn't understand and what they wanted to see from us next. Markets are where you find out very quickly whether your business idea is actually any good.

Because people don't sugar-coat it.

Especially Yorkshire folk. If something is too expensive, they'll tell you. If they don't like something, they'll tell you. If your stall looks rubbish, they'll probably let you know that too.

There is nowhere quite like a Yorkshire market for getting honest feedback. You don't have to wonder what people think because they'll happily tell you exactly what they think.

And actually, that's a brilliant thing when you're building a business.

You don't need everyone to tell you you're amazing.

You need people to be honest enough to help you improve. They'll tell you if something is too expensive.They'll tell you if they don't understand it.They'll walk straight past if your stall doesn't catch their eye. They'll ask questions you weren't expecting.

It's brutal.

But it's also the best business education you could ever get.

You learn how to explain what makes you different. You learn how to talk to people. You learn how to sell without being pushy.

Because every interaction teaches you something.I genuinely don't think we'd be where we are today without markets.

That's why I get a bit defensive when people look down on market trading. To me, a market isn't somewhere businesses end up. It's where so many businesses begin. It's where people test ideas. It's where people find their first customers. It's where people build confidence. It's where people take a chance on themselves.

So yes...

I accidentally embarrassed myself in front of hundreds of people.

But I'd still stand by the point I was trying to make.

Market trading isn't just old men selling fruit and veg.

It's also young people taking a chance on an idea, backing themselves, and building something from a folding table and a gazebo.

And I think that's something we should be shouting about a lot more.