Thank you Nanaimo!!!
What a summer that was… somewhere around 50,000 people visited downtown Nanaimo over the 11 weeks of the Commercial Street Night Market. We certainly found out there is a lot of interest in downtown, and in its ultimate success as the heart of our community.
We were so excited to host food and beverage vendors on Diana Krall Plaza including farmers, fishers, market garden people, bakers, pretzel makers, ice ‘creameries’, wineries, cideries, breweries, distillers and food trucks. On Commercial street we had a diverse collection of artists and artisans totalling well over 100 different individual vendors of very high quality.
Our entertainment really shone. From the ‘piano man’ Marty Steele who opened every Thursday night, to fiddlers, singer/songwriters, ukulele players, The Big Mess – a father and son team featuring trumpet and beat box and huge audience interaction, to our unicyclist jokester Akron the Barbarian and the incredibly talented Jake West, our juggler with a message. Oh, and don’t forget the hundreds we had dancing in the streets during the salsa/tango and hip hop demonstrations.
And finally, thanks to the wonderful merchants of downtown Nanaimo who opened their hearts and their stores to show off the fantastic and unique mix of merchandise and warm, friendly service they offer downtown every day.
We’ll be back downtown doing it all over again next summer. In the meantime, we’re working on new ideas to keep bringing people back for things like Christmas shopping and other events in the heart of the City. Thanks for being part of the fun so far!
Kim Smythe, CEO
Greater Nanaimo Chamber of Commerce
PS: I invite you to send me an email and tell me about your Night Market experience and let me know if you have any ideas about doing it better or differently.
ceo@nanaimochamber.bc.ca
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