Marché Maroc Marrakech

Marché Maroc Marrakech, one in a series of country-wide, PCV-organized and implemented craft fairs, was held at the Ensemble Artisanal April 14-18. The intent of the fair was to provide an opportunity for artisans working with PCVs across the country to attend a workshop on identifying sales opportunities, customer service, exhibit presentation, and matching products to the market, then put the information immediately into practice with a three day exhibition at a premier tourist stop in a major city.

I had signed on to the project as one of two members of the Artisan Committee, which involved communication with PCVs and their respective artisans to determine and confirm participants, providing travel and hotel logistics, translation of materials, keeping track of artisans, herding them to and from different locations, and being available for any artisan inquiries prior to or during the event.

The fair itself went smoothly. The artisans, forty in all, were mellow and patient throughout the duration, and all volunteers worked well with each other and the personnel of the Artisana. As I personally did not have artisans participating, (the potters here do not market their wares directly to tourists; they sell raw, undecorated items in bulk to middlemen for resale elsewhere) once the artisans were set up, familiar with things, and the tourists started rolling in, there wasn't a lot to do. I took on random errands to keep busy, at one point running through the back alley markets in search of a carpenter, at another, finding myself in a basement cyber cafe bargaining over the cost of color prints. All of us took turns on flier duty, awkwardly imposing ourselves in the paths of approaching tourists to hawk our cause, empathizing at last with the Moroccan merchants we've learned to snake past so aptly.

Hopefully the artisans were able to gain some new skills, establish new contacts, and learn from each other. I think each cooperative sold a decent amount. Each artisan was interviewed for feedback during the fair, and though I have yet to see a report of what was said, most of whom I spoke with and overheard seemed to regard the experience as positive. The next fair is in Rabat early next month. I won't be attending that one however, due to my being in ............................ America. That's right.

Bonus points if you spot the typo in the banner from the first pic.