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Bazaar brings world to Buffalo State's doorstep
By Colleen Young
On May 8, 2013
Those who enjoy exploring other cultures can access food and gifts from other nations without
having to leave the city limits.
The West Side Bazaar, located at 25 Grant St., is bringing the world to Buffalo's West Side.
The market and international food court features gifts, jewelry, fashions, arts, crafts, cuisine and
international kitchens to dine in and take out, from countries like India, Burma, Morocco and
Rwanda - and all of it is made by Buffalo residents.
"Buffalo State and the West Side Bazaar are the anchors of Grant Street," said Bonnie Smith,
president of Westminster Economic Development Initiative. "We're at both ends of Grant and
we know this is a place that students enjoy."
The bazaar is a not-for-profit business incubator for business owners to affordably start their
micro-enterprises. It's also a welcoming place for customers from Buffalo to come celebrate the
diversity of the West Side and to interact with immigrants and refugees.
This brightly colored hub for entrepreneurs has grown quickly, and it recently held a ribbon
cutting for their newest location, which was needed to fit the growing number of vendors. The
bazaar increased from six merchants to 16 in a year and a half, so they outgrew their old location
quickly. Each vendor has carefully chosen the products that they are selling. They are eager to
speak to, and get to know their customers.
With all of this growth, Smith hopes the new location will thrive in the Grant Street
neighborhood.
"We need to make this succeed," Smith said. "We need to have customers, such as students or
their parents too if they live locally. No matter how good an idea is, you need customers."
Raven Vasquez offers her assistance at many of the retailers who are hoping to start or expand
businesses in the future. Vasquez is a regular at the bazaar and says that they get a good amount
of patrons.
"Plenty of people come here," Vasquez said. "People are interested."
Once the business owners become well established, they "graduate" from the bazaar and open
their own businesses, just like the first graduate, Louise Sano, did after spending a year vending
at the bazaar.
Sano owns Global Villages and Global Chic, two shops on Grant Street where customers can
find crafts, clothes, jewelry, purses and accessories made by both local and international crafters.
She proves that the merchants can truly be successful on their own, even after moving out of the
bazaar.
Soe Maung is a current vendor at the bazaar who owns and is the chef of Kyel Sein Hein, which
serves specialty Burmese cuisine, and Abyssinia, which serves Ethiopian cuisine. He hopes to
one day open his own business.
"I want a big restaurant in the future," Maung said. "I'm really excited about this place. It's good
to start here. It's helping me a lot to be here."
Vasquez said that the merchants are a boon to the neighborhood.
"(They) help with the community clean up," Vasquez said. "They're changing the West Side
community, getting involved, and creating a new vibe."
Meg Dee, director of the Buffalo State Community Academic Center, said that student
involvement with the bazaar would help grow the connection between the campus and its
surrounding neighborhood. She encouraged students to visit the bazaar to escape the stresses of
finals.
"The bazaar is a really nice addition to the Buffalo State community," Dee said. "It's a fun
destination and a learning opportunity for students to come have a cultural experience."
Colleen Young can be reached by email at young.record@live.com.
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