New Yorkers shopping for gifts this holiday season can head uptown to the Lee C. Bollinger Forum’s Holiday Market in Harlem. The holiday market, sponsored by Columbia University, celebrates the community and invites local vendors to participate and sell their products.
The holiday market hosts 35 vendors, both food and merchants, all from the Harlem neighborhood, with varying participation. The market has been in operation since Dec. 1 and will run through Dec. 19. Hours of operation are Monday through Thursday, noon to 5 p.m., and Friday, 4-8 p.m. The location of the market is University Forum and Academic Conference Center at 3207 Broadway.
The holiday market was inspired by a small-business initiative in February in which businesses could set up a pop-up shop for one week in the free community space at Columbia University’s Lee C. Bollinger Forum. The program that hosts vendors for pop-up shops has become a phenomenon and is now a regular offering.
When the holiday season arrived, Columbia’s Event Management team decided to host a holiday market featuring all the vendors from their pop-ups this past year.
Vendors fill out an application to participate in the holiday market, with the added bonus of not paying a vendor fee to join, thanks to Columbia’s sponsorship.
“I think what makes us stand out is that our location is really unique. There aren’t many other markets during this time period. A lot of them are also on the weekends,” Emily Ailts, assistant general manager of catering sales, said. “Another thing that we’re really proud of is that Columbia sponsors the market itself; we don’t take any fees from the vendors. And the space is free. If they submit an application and are accepted, they can sell their products, meet other vendors and potential buyers and do so without paying any fees. So everything they make, they keep.”
The holiday market enables small local businesses to expand their sales and marketing reach. Vendors are from all backgrounds, and some are women-owned. Products are handmade and sustainable.
Hoop earrings, tasty teas and more
Columbia has opened doors for entrepreneurs such as Raysa Veras, owner of Rogue Hoops, a jewelry business selling items ranging from hoop earrings to other pieces.
Veras, originally from the Dominican Republic, moved to New York in 2016. In 2018, Veras began her jewelry business around the same time her father was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. During one of the most challenging periods of her life, Veras started making jewelry as therapy, which led her to launch her jewelry brand. Veras also teaches jewelry-making classes at a hospital in the Bronx for women undergoing cancer treatment and at various community spaces.
Over the years, Rogue Hoops has participated in several seasonal markets, including the Lee C. Bollinger Holiday Market.
“Columbia opened the door for me. I am grateful and blessed because this [Columbia University] place is so beautiful. It’s a big opportunity. We received the diversity award. The culture here is the best time for me,” Veras said.
Along with Veras, Harlem native Letiticia Robinson also saw an opportunity to promote her new tea business, Botanical Moment, at the holiday market this winter season.
“So what I’m promoting is really mental health, self-care. I’m promoting community. I’ve paired myself with like-minded individuals, meaning … you know, local gardens, local farms,” she said.
Robinson started her business in July after leaving her corporate job to operate it full time. Tea culture has been part of Robinson’s life since childhood, when her late grandmother would give her tea when she was sick, and in her adult life, when she worked as an apprentice for a tea distributor.
These life events led her to enter the tea business, where she sold her products and merchandise, including her bestseller, an Ethiopian and Earl Grey coffee-tea blend.
As a new business owner, Robinson advises up-and-coming entrepreneurs on the ins and outs of the business world.
“I would say definitely put yourself in a position where you can learn about the field that you’re going into,” said Robinson. “Understand who the wholesalers are, the distributors, the competitors. Kind of know your market. And then also understand what sets you apart. What’s your story? Make sure you have a story.”
The holiday markets set the stage for entrepreneurs to make their mark in business. Learn more about the Lee C. Bollinger Forum Holiday Market on its website at theforum.columbia.edu.
