LIVONIA, Mich. (WXYZ) — It seems the social media posts of a local turkey farmer may be behind an unexpected boost in sales ahead of Thanksgiving.
Roperti's Turkey Farm in Livonia has been in the business of selling freshly dressed turkeys for 76 years.
"I spend a lot of money on feed, so when you feed something correctly, it's gonna taste correctly, so my turkeys are very juicy, flavorful and tasty," said owner Christine Roperti.
The farm typically sells out of its 4,000 birds in the days leading up to Thanksgiving.
After seeing a 16 percent decline in sales last year, this Thanksgiving, Roperti says they are seeing more customers and have already sold 4,100 turkeys.
"I think I might have maybe 50 left over this year," said Roperti who is still hoping to attract customers.
In 2023, there were enough left behind to be sold for Christmas.
"Now that I'm on TikTok, I've got a few more customers and more people are seeing it," Roperti said.
Roperti who loves purple, the Detroit Lions, and goes by "The Turkey Lady" on TikTok, says this year's sales may be a sign that the economy is getting slightly better.
According to The American Farm Bureau Federation's data, food inflation is down from last year.
Their research for a Thanksgiving meal of Turkey, cubed stuffing, sweet potatoes, dinner rolls, frozen peas, fresh cranberries, celery, carrots, pumpkin pie mix and crusts, whipping cream and whole milk for 10 will cost $58.08, down 5% from last year. However, this is still 19% higher than five years ago.
It's a trend some customers shopping for Thanksgiving say they've noticed.
"I am more concerned, so I shopped at different stores, used coupons," said Laura Lukasiewicz.
Lukasiewicz's husband suggested they shop locally at Roperti's for their turkey. She excitedly put the turkey in the trunk as she prepares to make dinner for a larger group than normal.
"He heard about fresh turkeys being better,” she said.
Charlie Harris has traveled from Grosse Ille for the past four years to support the small business. His wife owns a small buisness in Wyandotte and understands how important local support can be.
Harris also picked up a turkey for another family.
"I really appreciate the opportunity to help a small business and get a nice size turkey," said Harris.
The overall cost of the Thanksgiving meal is something he has paid attention to.
"Over the last couple of years it has gone up quite a bit having a large family, there's eight of us, so it does hit the pocket book a little bit," said Harris. "I'm optimistic about the coming years and the price of food coming down. It's gonna be tight this year, but it's gonna be be all right."
