Community project for independent businesses celebrates tenth anniversary

A community project in North Devon which brings together independent businesses, artists and musicians is celebrating its 10th anniversary – and its founder expects this year’s events to be better than ever.

Connect and Create began in 2015, the brainchild of Chay West, owner of The Cove retro clothing store in Barnstaple. 

It is now one of the biggest independent events in North Devon, and its spring event, ‘Blossom’, took place in the town at the Pannier Market on Sunday,  April 27, with a further event in May.

Chay explained: “I thought there was a gap in the market and that we needed to build a bit of a network with small businesses and independents. 

“So I just took it upon myself to try and acquire the market for a day and see how we could put on a collective of small businesses,  which marked the first Connect and Create, in 2015. Fast forward 10 years, which is obviously the anniversary year this year, and I think we're on about our 16th Connect and Create Festival.”

During this time, Connect and Create has showcased nearly 600 small businesses and independents. The events are designed to provide a platform and network for small businesses, creatives and musicians, so that they can both support each other and reach a wider audience. 

The emphasis is on traders who create their own products, rather than just buying in items and selling them on. So far, creative people aged as young as nine have taken part, selling craft items of their own creation.

Chay adds: “I give free spots for youngsters, just to give them a bit of an avenue into the independent world. So that's been really cool to see. 

“We've got so many different demographics coming on board with it because of that.  There's a wide spectrum of people who are doing it.”

This latest festival will offer a wide range of crafts from illustrators, clothing and jewellery through to homewares. There will also be street food, drinks, and a live music stage in what was formerly the Rabbit Hole courtyard behind the Pannier Market, run in partnership with the Pickwell Foundation, (the North Devon-based charity which supports displaced people and refugees). 

More than 160 creatives signed up to take part in the two-part Blossom event, a record entry, and later in the year there will also be Nirvana, a two-part summer event in August, and autumn/winter events which will be called Invierno, (Spanish for winter).

Connect and Create will also have a presence at Oceanfest, the music, surf and lifestyle festival taking place at Croyde. This is the second time the festival has hosted a marketplace area, with an expanded presence this year.

“It’s great to see that there's so many different things happening throughout the North Devon area, says Chay. “And for me, it’s another opportunity for the traders and creatives to take part in something. We're also starting the Connect and Create Flea Markets this year as well. These will begin in the summer, and are small-scale events happening outside. 

“We'll be taking them all across North Devon. There'll be a number of events happening, probably from July through to September.”

Chay says that small independent traders in North Devon can face particular challenges, one of which is exposure. 

“I think there's always that struggle with getting the right promotion out. And whether that is having areas where we can actually promote ourselves, that would be a massive start, to build maybe an area where people can have that advertising space, which seems to be lacking throughout North Devon. Social  media is a massive tool right now, and it's helped me build my business, but it can only take you so far within that side of things.” 

Indeed Connect and Create was conceived to address that need for exposure, and in turn help give small traders in North Devon opportunities similar to those in Bristol and Exeter. 

A new innovation at last year’s Connect and Create events was the Gold Standard award. The winning trader receives a certificate, and a free stall at the next event. “I’ve just seen the winners we picked last year, and they've stepped up in how they've pushed their own businesses,” says Chay. 

“It was just a massive confidence booster. And I look into each individual and try to pick people who I feel probably need that bit of a push. I feel like we have seen a lot of people flourish after these events.”

Thousands of people are expected to visit the two Blossom events, which it is hoped will benefit not only the stallholders taking part but also neighbouring businesses, such as the independent shops in Butcher’s Row. 

Looking to the future, Chay has ambitions to broaden the event, possibly at an outdoor venue, although this would need much broader support. 

“You want it to be a thriving hub of culture. I feel because we've got a modern approach on how we do things, whether that be the branding, the way we look after people, the look of our festivals, the style of it, I feel like we've probably got a little bit more of a head start than others right now. And the fact that we've been doing it for 10 years.

“I feel like we've got a body of work to showcase.”