Jeffreys Bay Tecoma Craft Market: a Market like None Other
Early in 2001, Suzette du Randt, a lady with a rare gift for organization and coordination of enterprise, noticed that there was a small group of citizens who on the odd Saturday morning would set up a table or two at various spots on the grassy verges of Jeffreys Bay streets to spend the morning offering for sale an assortment of wares obviously crafted by their own hands. Impressed with what she saw, it occurred to Suzette that this little group might easily form the nucleus of a properly organised market comprising as many crafters and artists as cared to join, together but separately selling a wide diversity of goods common only in their excellence of quality. So she approached each of the vendors in turn, describing what she had in mind and inviting them to attend a meeting to be held at her home, in order to swap ideas and decide on a general modus operandi.
So, early on the morning of Saturday 28 July 2001, perhaps a half-dozen aspirant marketers laid out their wares and commenced doing business with an agreeably interested clientèle, invited in advance by word of mouth and a willing press. Suzette, herself a stallholder, initially took it upon herself to attend to every aspect of the market’s organization and continued to do so for almost five years – a formidable undertaking indeed and one that speaks volumes for her enthusiasm, energy and commitment to a worthy enterprise.
In February 2006, Suzette handed over the reins of management to a nine-member committee chosen from amongst the stallholders. The market, meanwhile, had grown from the initial half-dozen stalls to over forty; and since then it has continued to grow steadily.
On May 30 2009, the market underwent a small but significant change. Prior to that date, the constitution provided only for the sale of art and craft work, to the exclusion of anything edible. The thinking behind this stipulation was to avoid competition with the tea tent and to protect the integrity of lovingly crafted merchandise from despoilment by little fingers made sticky from close contact with tannie Hettie se koeksisters. After much discussion, it was decided to invite bona fide gardeners, bakers, confectioners and the like to join the market, strictly on the understanding that their produce should be sold properly packed or bottled and for consumption at home or at least off the market premises. Thus, to some extent, the market took on a “countrified” character, in recognition of which it became officially known and advertised as the Jeffreys Bay Craft and Country Market. Habit dies hard, however, so by popular consent the name reverted to the familiar Jeffreys Bay Tecoma Craft Market.
Crafters come and crafters go, but one feature of the market that is never absent is the traditional Tea Tent. Here you can take a seat at one of the tables provided and enjoy a fresh-from-the-skottel wors or egg-and-bacon roll, a slice of home-baked cake, milk tart or savoury pie, a pancake, jaffle or whatever morsel of tasty ingenuity the charity of the day has contrived to tempt your taste buds, washed down with a cup of tea or coffee or your favourite soft drink. The tent is run as a fundraising project by various churches, charitable institutions and bona fide clubs, affording customers the satisfaction of knowing that, while enjoying the delicacies on offer, they are at the same time giving support to a worthy cause.
Among the stallholders, the only one still regularly on site whose presence graced the original event is Jenny Burger with her dolls’ clothes, sundry knitwear, needlework and dog jackets. She is closely followed in longevity of participation by Vincent Olivier, whose paintings, many of which bear a striking resemblance to the masterpieces of Tinus and Gabriel de Jongh, can only be described as superb. Then, two months later, came Neil and Joey Skinner with their wide and varied assortment of needlework, woodwork, decorative fridge magnets, decoupage and the like; and, in the same month, the “Sisters in Stitches,” Anne Jarmain and Barbara Coetzee, whose specialities include a beautiful range of embroidered handbags, shopping bags, place mats, wooden trays … the variety seems well-nigh endless. The stalls of these hardy souls are the only ones that remain from the inaugural year, but the numbers have grown steadily to the present complement of 50.
What sets the Jeffreys Bay Tecoma Craft Market apart from other similar markets is that the accent is first and foremost on the exploitation of individual talent, ingenuity and hard work. Strictly embargoed is any item of merchandise not crafted, baked, grown or painted by the stallholder’s own hands. Added to this is the insistence on quality, strictly enforced through a requirement that goods intended for sale must be made available for inspection by a committee member before a Certificate of Accreditation allowing participation will be issued.
The market is held regularly on the morning of the last Saturday of every month, weather permitting. In addition, extra markets are arranged to serve the needs of visitors during school holidays, long weekends, Easter and most particularly over the festive season, when an event is staged on every Saturday in December, through to the first in January.
Parking presents no problem, with plentiful space available on the wide grass verge on either side of Da Gama Road.
So, whether permanent resident or occasional visitor, be assured that a pleasant shopping experience awaits you at the Jeffreys Bay Tecoma Craft Market, in colourful and idyllic surroundings well within earshot of the famous J-Bay surf. Whether you come to buy or just to “look,” we the stallholders look forward to making your acquaintance.
Source: Rusty Jarmain