New entrepreneurs bring fresh energy to ByWard Market amid changes (CBC)
CBC Ottawa - August 6, 2024
Last year, Mohammed Echchaje opened Marrakech Crafts to sell Moroccan handicrafts, including handmade leather bags. With its diversity of cultural offerings, the ByWard Market is still the best place in Ottawa to reach tourists, Echchaje said.
"The ByWard Market is still a meeting place, a place that remains very rich in culture," he said in French. "We hope that it always stays that way."
Echchaje said the first year in business has been "so-so" — a reality he blames on economic challenges and the cost of living — but he has no plans to leave the market.
He sees "a lot of effort" to attract more people to the market and to fill it with an even richer cultural mix.
The ByWard Market District Authority, which began operations in November, didn't have data on how many businesses have opened or closed during the pandemic.
In its annual report released in June, it counted 18.6 million individual visits to the market, short of the 25.6 million in 2019.
Victoria Williston, the authority's communications manager, said their goal is to "ensure that the ByWard Market remains a premier destination that seamlessly blends its rich history with contemporary charm."
She pointed to "innovative retail concepts" like the Immigrant Entrepreneur Canada pop-up shop on York Street — where Irina Khazanova was selling Russian pies last week.
Originally from Moscow, she came to Canada four years ago with her wife to escape anti-LGBT persecution, but has held onto the childhood tradition of baking the soft, pillowy pies of her homeland.
Friday was only her third day in the ByWard Market — each immigrant entrepreneur has the pop-up for just one week — but she sees a lot to like in the neighbourhood.
"I really like being here because you get to see all different kinds of people," she said. "You get to see tourists and people who work here and are just looking for lunch. So it's a really versatile audience here, which is exactly what I've been looking for."