A MARKET dedicated to showcasing Black businesses is set to return to Manchester for its third year.

Melanin Markets, which celebrates the contribution of businesses ran by Black men, first welcomed shoppers in December 2021 in the run-up to the busy Christmas season and again in May this year when the event was held at one of Manchester’s oldest theatres, the Royal Exchange Theatre.

The duo behind the event, Kelly Morgan and Bianca Daneille, are preparing to welcome shoppers for this year’s event called Melanin Markets: The King Edition which will take place this Sunday (October 9). Danielle said attendees would see Black-owned businesses promoted “vibrantly and unapologetically”.

“We purposefully choose to host our event, within unorthodox spaces not usually frequented by the Black community. We want to normalise seeing and spending with Black businesses whilst breaking down systemic discrimination and inequality,” she said.

Celebration

The market will house over 30 businesses led by Black men in a celebration of black joy, the variety of Black masculinity and pushing back against the negative narratives often associated with Black men and boys. 

The founder of Black Pound Day, Swiss, will be a special guest speaker and is expected to deliver a speech on the day. The cultural influencer and member of the So Solid Crew has seen the Black Pound movement grow in popularity since the Black Lives Matter protests that followed the death of George Floyd in May 2020. 

The founder of Medicave Studios, Abnormal Sleepz, is behind Mindfulness, Music and Medcave – a range of sessions, talks and intimate performances at Melanin Markets: The King Edition which highlight Black Musicians in the north-west region.  

Keen shoppers can expect to see an array of cuisine such as East African and Indo-Caribbean inspired food, and accessories drawn from vibrant African print and homeware.

Catalyst

According to Morgan the Black Lives Matter movement resurgence was a catalyst for putting issues affecting the community on the map, including the need for more Black businesses to be in the spotlight.

“The Black Pound Day initiative plays an extremely important role in creating opportunities for the Black community to gain a stronger standing economically” she said. “Black owned businesses in the UK face a variety of challenges such as underrepresentation, limited access to start-up funds, and barriers accessing wider markets.

“Recent reports have shown that 88% of Black owned businesses have been self-funded and quite relevant to this figure studies have shown that Black owned businesses are 5 times more likely to be rejected for Loans and Grants. 

Succeed

Morgan continued: “These figures highlight the need for change so that Black businesses are able to imagine, actualise and succeed fairly in the UK. And so in alignment with the Black Pound Day movement which aims to address the economic inequalities and imbalances affecting Black businesses and entrepreneurs in the UK and global diasporic communities – Melanin Markets Manchester celebrates and promotes Black owned business vibrantly within unorthodox spaces not usually frequented by the Black community – with the aim to normalise seeing and spending with Black businesses.” 

A stallholder who participated in a previous edition of the event said: “This was the most professionally organised market I have attended. It was such a special day to feel appreciated by the public, but also for us to appreciate other businesses and all of their talents. I think we all share some frustration at times with our experiences at other events around the city, but the experience at Melanin Markets was liberating, emotional, a day to be remembered.”

Melanin Markets: The King Edition will be at HOME Mcr theatre on Sunday 9th October.