Nottingham Creative Fringe

What are your roles in the project?
Kirsty: I am co-organiser of the Fringe and I’ll also have a Bees Make Honey stall there. My speciality is running around with a clipboard looking slightly frazzled.
Laura: I'm co-organiser number two. As the foodie in the duo I'm sorting out the food stalls and spreading the word. On the day I'll be setting up the Merkato stall with artisan products designed in Nottingham and made in East Africa. I’m also organising a Gallery Walk introducing folk to Surface, Bohunk, One Thorsby, Backlit and the Contemporary. 

Where did the idea stem from?
Kirsty: We'd been talking for a while of doing an event at Sneinton Market, so we met up with the lovely Wendy and Brian to bash some ideas around and this is what we came up with.
Laura: I had such a great experience working at the CQ Pop-Up Shop in the run up to Christmas last year that I wanted to do something similar again. We spoke about it with others from the Pop-Up and we really wanted to fill a gap in opportunity for small fledgling brands from Nottingham to showcase their wares.

How do Bees Make Honey Creative Community and Merkato tie into each other as organisations? 
Kirsty: Bees Make Honey is a social enterprise for supporting people entering and working in the creative industries. A showcase like this one is a great example of the potential of pooling ideas and resources for the greater good. For us, Merkato are a really interesting business with a similar ethos.
Laura: Merkato is about connecting designers with artisans in emerging economies like East Africa. We are about collaborative production and there is no better place for us to be than Nottingham. With a wealth of young designers, makers, marketing and branding minds we can make direct connections with talented artisan groups to drive sustainable growth in their communities. We make products which tell a story of resilience, creativity and expression - a lot like Bees Make Honey.

Have you worked together in the past and will you again?
Kirsty: I've worked with Laura before at the CQ Pop-Up Shop, so I know she's tres lovely. I’d work with her again as soon as she's stopped jetting off to different countries every other month! She's managed to work globetrotting into her job description, whereas I'm pretty focused on the East Midlands.
Laura: Globetrotting... Ha! I love working with Kirsty, she's so much more organised than me and makes all this planning feel like a breeze. Plus, she just knows so many people that do really cool stuff. In the future I look forward to Kirsty teaching me how to write things that people actually enjoy reading. Nottingham Creative Fringe is going to have two events a year and be world renowned... Paul Smith will be popping down to Sneinton Market to scout new designers! 

Why is it important that the creative stalls must have been trading for under five years?
Kirsty: We wanted a real focus on new businesses and fresh graduate artists. Getting into creative fairs can be pretty costly and high-risk, so we’ve made an affordable way for designer-makers to start doing them, as well as creating an opportunity for the arts to come together and shake their thing. We want to include photographers, fine artists, publishers and musicians. It's trying to bring a broad spectrum to the general public in an approachable way.
Laura: It's hard for businesses like mine to find the right fit at festivals, craft fairs and large events in Nottingham. We either can't afford the big festivals or are placed next to craft stalls that target a different customer, so we curated our own to fit our needs! 

What have the applications been like for arts and crafts?
Kirsty: We've had a great response. We have booksellers, jewellery-makers, illustrators, photographers, fashion, music, print artists and accessories designers.
Laura: Cool, unusual bikes, a walking tour of all the independent galleries, and all the other unexpended gems that Sneinton often pulls out at community events.

What is it exactly that you’ve been looking for in an application?
Kirsty: When we got together to go through applications with Sabira Silcock, our new Dec Arts specialist, we all seemed very much on the same page in terms of what we wanted. We wanted the standard to be as high as if we'd been doing it with more established businesses. We also wanted to lean towards more unusual fine art pieces rather than more commercial products.

What music is on offer?
Kirsty: We are having the music curated by a new local label - I Own You Records. It was set up by Rich Dundas, who also does film nights with Cinema Diabolique and Kneel Before Zod, and has a full time job to boot. They're pushing some great bands like The Cusp and Rattle. They've just released Rattle's EP - they’re a two piece drums and vocals act who really are very different to the usual local band.

What about food?
Laura: Fresh, local, delicious treats. We love good food, every market should have it. We have Damn Fine Coffee bringing the caffeinated joy - they're a new local company who roast their own beans. We also have some Caribbean fair and local vegetarian delicacies and hearty good food from the Stripey Beetroot.

How can we find out what your organisations are up to after the event?
Kirsty: There's a mailing list sign up on the Bees Make Honey website along with loads of free info for creative types. We're on Facebook and Twitter @beesmakehoneycc
Laura: Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @Merkato_MKTO 

Anything else you’d like to say?
Kirsty: I'm a firm believer in 'Community not Competition' so I'd like to spread that around the local creative scene. Other than that, we'd love to see you there!

Nottingham Creative Fringe will take place on Sneinton Market on Saturday 6 September after the veg market, from 2.30pm until 6.30pm

Merkato website
Bees Make Honey website