A new market this summer in Brentwood Bay is starting to take off.
“We are what I like to call a ‘pocket’ market which means we’re a modest size market with a maximum, this year, of 25 merchants on any given Sunday,” explained Brentwood Bay Community Market organizer, Jill Walker.
The market opened earlier this month and is run by a small board of directors and For Goodness Sake Events, she said, adding that it is a non-profit organization.
“Our proceeds from table fees and fund-raising will be donated this year to the Victoria chapter of Bicycles for Humanity (B4H),” she said, adding that B4H collects bikes and sends them to various places in Africa providing benefits to its citizens by creating business opportunities, job-training for bike repair and opening doors for children to travel to school and people to travel to work.
The market features an array of merchants including some permanent and some drop in.
“About half the market’s merchants are drop-in which we think is a good thing as it changes some things up every week and offers something new,” Walker said.
“Our main focus is on the home-based artisans and crafters. By making the table fee affordable with no extra membership fees, we are providing these small enterprises with another venue for promoting and selling their wares in addition to Etsy, EBay and the like,” she said.
Walker also added that the market features a smattering of local organic produce and live music every week.
“We believe our market compliments the other markets on the Peninsula by being different and giving a choice to those who may not be able to attend a Saturday event,” she said.
For more information on the Brentwood Community Market, contact Walker at marketinthepark2014@gmail.com.
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Stay tuned in next Wednesday’s edition of the PNR for a feature on one of the other weekly markets on the Saanich Peninsula.
reporter@peninsulanewsreview.com
