Market with a cause

Dubai: Flea markets and pop-up bazaars are nothing new to Dubai, yet there’s something that sets Marketeerzz apart. A shopper’s paradise that springs into life every weekend at the Jumeirah Town Center, there’s a telling story behind each of its 30-plus stalls that makes all the difference.

The brainchild of Montserrat Martin, a Spanish artist in Dubai, Marketeerzz is a fair trade market with a distinct cause. It sells everything from clothes, bags and handcrafted jewellery to home accessories, perfumes and kitchenware. And with every item you buy, you touch the life of someone needy behind the product.

“Marketeerzz provides a sustained platform for many underprivileged people from around the world. It works directly with artisans, combining community projects with fair trade that takes place at a semi permanent space in a prominent location in Dubai,” said Martin.

She said the response to the idea has been so encouraging since its inception last April that the frequency of the fair has gone up from once a month to thrice a week.

Amazing craft

Charity begins at home and one of the groups benefitting a lot from this venture is Joud from Ajman. “This group comprises teenaged girls who belong to very low-income families from Baluchistan, Pakistan and north India. They do not attend schools but work wonders with jewellery, crochet and other handicrafts. Their products are a huge draw at Marketeerzz.”

Similarly, every time you pick up a toy or bag at a stall run by Manta & Rebozo, you are helping 40 families in rural Mexico who live off the project. There’s also a stall where the sale of copper kitchenware goes to help African women in Zimbabwe and helps them send their children to school. “Many of these women are handicapped but they make the most amazing tableware and kitchenware,” said Martin.

The most recent additions to the pop-up platform are products from flood-ravaged Kashmir in India. “Rural craftsmen from the flooded areas have suffered untold losses. We are trying to help them rebuild their lives in whatever small way we can. They make the finest silk and pashmina stoles and scarves, besides other products,” said Martin, adding that a group of 70 women from the Godavari basin in India’s Andhra Pradesh have also come on board with their intricate crochet and embroidery works.

Martin said the concept of fair trade ensures that these artisans are not exploited, even as investors keep a nominal profit margin. “It’s a win-win for everyone and that’s what makes it fair and sustainable,” she said.

The market, which took a Christmas break, will be back in business from January 15. It will be held every Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Jumeirah Town Centre.