The week-long pop-up market will see eight new traders selling their wares from London’s oldest food market.
From 6th October, Borough Market is teaming up with TERN (The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network) for a week-long pop-up market celebrating refugee-owned food businesses.
The event will give eight small businesses the opportunity to showcase their products at London’s oldest food market: working alongside Borough’s esteemed traders and telling their stories to thousands of visitors each day. The entrepreneurs will showcase a diverse range of food and drink inspired by the culture, cuisine and heritage of their homeland, with products including Ukrainian honey, Turkish spice mixes, and Palestinian granola, giving visitors the chance to discover new flavours and the stories behind them.
For the entrepreneurs involved, the pop-up presents an opportunity to sell their wares at the city’s best-known food market: a place where the stories behind unique food and drink are celebrated year-round. As well as engaging with customer’s from across the world, the refugee-owned businesses will have the opportunity to build connections with the Market’s established traders and make their own contribution to Borough’s rich culinary history.
A first-of-its-kind event, the partnership demonstrates Borough Market’s commitment to recognising and celebrating the contribution refugees have made to London’s food culture. Writing for the Borough Market website in June, TERN ambassador Fatma Al-Baiti said: “If you look closely at the foods we consider fundamentally ‘London’ you realise that our culinary scene has always been influenced by people who arrived on our shores in search of sanctuary or a new start… Some of the country’s most familiar comforts are, at their core, the inventions of immigrants and refugees.”
TERN is a social enterprise that partners with refugee entrepreneurs to develop their own businesses, so that they can take control of their futures. They support refugee entrepreneurs to grow thriving businesses, access mainstream markets, and shape a fairer UK economy, supporting over 1,600 entrepreneurs over the last decade.
Businesses trading at the Borough Market x TERN pop-up include:
Ruby Kitchen: Turkish spice blends inspired by the recipe of founder Ada’s mother
Roba and the Sun: A new granola brand inspired by Palestinian flavours and stories
Bee Brave: Raw, unfiltered honey from Ukraine
Boemo: One-woman, refugee-owned micro bakery serving Italian desserts
Nemi Teas: Premium, organic tea products creating opportunities for refugees
Kunfi: Pistachio-flavoured desserts, inspired by Syria
Osman’s Market: Famed Peckham juice spot
Shane Holland, Chair of Trustees at Borough Market says:
“The positive contribution refugee communities have made to London’s food scene is undeniable and we’re lucky to have such a diverse range of cuisines and cultures being represented at our pop-up. It’s our responsibility as a food market to reflect our local community and celebrate the passion, expertise and dedication of the people behind small food and drink businesses across our city. We are incredibly proud to support the wonderful work of TERN and give the businesses the spotlight they deserve. I can’t wait for Borough Market visitors to experience their work first-hand.”
Fred Kastner, Director of Social Innovation at TERN says:
“Our partnership with Borough Market gives our amazing alumni the opportunity to showcase and sell their products to foodies, local communities and visitors from around the world. We’re so excited to see the doors this can open, through a whole week of trading and new connections, bringing together entrepreneurs, buyers, market managers and others across the food industry.
“This kind of partnership shows what is possible when talented, displaced entrepreneurs come together with inclusive markets that see their potential, creating a win-win for entrepreneurs, markets and their customers. We’d love to see more markets and buyers follow Borough Market’s example, meet the entrepreneurs in our community and explore how they can begin working with them.”
Ada Ayse Imamogly, founder of Ruby Kitchen and TERN alumna says:
“To bring Ruby Kitchen and the story behind it to such a special place makes me incredibly emotional. This is something I have been building slowly, with my own hands: inspired by my mum, my family, and the flavours of home, and it is now going all the way to Borough Market. Throughout my journey, TERN has believed in us, supported us, and helped turn something that felt like such a big dream into something real. And I’m also so grateful to Borough Market for opening its doors and giving us this incredible opportunity to trade there.”
