Suva’s longest running business incubator is a fun day out
By Samantha Magick
Visit downtown Suva on the third Sunday of every month and you will find three vibrant streets full of local products, food and music. The ROC Market is an institution in the capital, growing from nine tents in Foster Street when it started almost two decades ago to 32 tents forming a horseshoe in the streets adjacent to government buildings.
“It’s such a beautiful space, and I’m proud of it on so many levels,” says Ellana Kalounisiga who manages the market through her company Knox Entertainment.
Kolounisiga first took on management of the market, which is owned by the proprietors of the ROC Café, seven years ago, although she thinks it has been running in some form for about 18 years.
She says while the number of vendors has grown, they are still very selective about who is allowed to join the market.
“Our biggest aim is to keep things handmade or locally made, but it’s impossible because there’s not enough product out there to do that. So, we do have allocations of stores for people selling other things. But we try really hard to stick with the local and new products to the Fijian market as well.”
Market stalwarts include Michelle Bower’s Pawpaw Patch. Bower sells lovely flower earrings and sulus, bags and cards featuring prints from her mother’s paintings. Kavara Wood Art, which makes beautiful wood and resin boards, Niu Grillz which now has a permanent restaurant at the Suva Golf Club and Waitika Honey with its range of honey and honey products also made their name through the market, Kalounisiga says.
Local visual artists have also run stores selling their artwork and other goods at the market. “Irami Buli, Warwick Marlow, Lambert Ho; well-established artists in Fiji use the market at their leisure,” Kalounisiga says.
“We can have, sometimes, seven or eight of Fiji’s best, most talented artists sell at the market, which is fantastic.”
Aroma Kitchen’s Felichaya Kayes, with her wide range of chutneys, dips and pickles is a market stalwart, and always has a new recipe to taste.
At a recent market, she talked about how valuable the platform is for showcasing her products, saying the general manager of a big Suva supermarket had just been by the stall, tasted a few chutneys and said he was interested in stocking them.
“Since coming to the ROC Market my business and my personality has grown more,” Kayes says.
“My biggest dream was to send my products to overseas markets but when the pandemic happened, my dreams stopped. Now I don’t worry about that because customers from all over the world are coming and buying my product and taking them back home.”
Kalounisiga says business development and sustainability is an important part of the ROC Market experience.
“It’s not just about setting up a stall and selling. We help and offer advice. And we have joined hands with Westpac on several occasions to do microfinance training.
“So vendors learn about the value of budgeting, price points, where to place themselves in the market. A lot of my work on the back end is helping people to develop brands. So, you know, rather than just coming and putting some things on the table and selling it, we show them the value behind creating a brand and what that brand can do for Fiji and for their business.”
She continues: “It’s a whole learning process on financing, marketing, labelling, packaging, we try really hard to be eco-friendly. For all our food vendors, all their packaging has to be eco-friendly because we want to do our part for Fiji, and we try to minimise as much as we can on plastics. We don’t have plastics
unless they are stamped as biodegradable.”
In the future, Kalounisiga would like to see the expansion of their online marketplace-Fiji Community Market-which first launched during Covid with the support of an Asian Foundation Grant.
In the long term, she would love a purely handmade or locally produced market, although she acknowledges this may take several years.
Kalounisiga would love to see more young people participate as vendors at the market, saying the school system does not encourage a lot of entrepreneurship or creativity.
“And there’s proven history there that people can make a good income out of doing something that they believe in and something that they’re passionate about. So, it’d be really nice to have some school leavers or students that have a great idea and want to showcase that and see how it goes and the ROC is the perfect platform for them to do so.”
She concludes: “I absolutely love the market. I love managing the market. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to have been able to do this because through it, I’ve got to meet some really amazing creatives.
“I’ve also learned about what we can do collectively to help on so many things like waste reduction, and there’s so many awareness programs that have come through the market.”
Tips for first timers to the ROC Market
- Bring a bag: You may think you’re just going to browse but chances are you will leave with some treasure.
- Bring a hat and fan and wear sunscreen: It can get hot.
- Stay hydrated: there are lots of vendors offering creative juice and iced tea combinations and fresh flavoured iceblocks, or simply grab a bu (green coconut).
- Circumnavigate the market before committing to your purchase- there is lots of choice.
- Plan to have lunch there at the market: you’re spoilt for culinary options and there is seating in the Dolphin’s complex or under the trees at government buildings.
- Cash is convenient, although some vendors are using digital wallets. There are several ATMs nearby.
The Gold FM ROC Market is on the third Sunday of each month from 9-3pm Loftus, Carnarvon and Thurston Streets.
