SPLICED LIFE /
INTERVIEW / PERFECT MATCH MARKET
"The Perfect Match market
was my brain child and I have
always been inspired by the
jazz/ New Orleans scene."
SM: The market is an instant success, with
people fighting over the last souvla - were you
expecting such an enthusiastic reaction?
Anna: Gosh no not at all! We believed in our
concept and put a lot of effort into the marketing
but we definitely did not expect such a turn out.
It shows that Jozi really is starving for what we’re
cooking up.
ups so none of our vendors sell the
same product.
SM: Speaking of vendors, your son/
brother’s cocktails are delicious and potent! I watched him pour out
various white spirits into a cup, but it
still tasted like strawberry jelly. This
isn’t a question, I just had to mention it… But have
you tasted them?!
Roberta: Yeeee ha! They are amazing and YES
we had numerous tasting evenings to perfect
each recipe!
SM: How did you happen upon the Desmond
Street venue?
SM: The overriding risk of any live event is that
things inevitably go wrong on the fly – have there
been any disasters?
Roberta: After attending a previous function at the
venue I fell in love with the view, as most do, and
approached the venue directly with my idea.
Anna: Thankfully nothing too dramatic. Our first
event saw a glitch with the electrical supply but we
managed to sort it out and to date we’ve had pretty
smooth sailing.
SM: As winter approaches, will you keep going
with the (beautiful, but largely open-air) venue?
SM: The market currently runs on the last Friday
of the month, are you planning on making it a
more permanent fixture?
Roberta: We decided in the beginning that we
wanted our event to be a ‘destination’ and not just
another weekend market. Also we are focusing on
the concept of pop up so there isn’t really avenue
for a permanent fixture.
SM: How do you choose your vendors?
Anna: It all came down to what they serve, and we
then decided on who we felt were the best for our
street food theme. We also tried to avoid double
Anna: Yes definitely! We are aware that winter
is here but so is the rest of Jozi and any night out
in winter requires an extra jacket and boots! Our
show will go on and we have invited people to
bring their own blankies too which makes it more
intimate and cosy. After all we only have to get
through 3 cold Fridays before it’s Spring again.
SM: Is the market now the main focus for
either/both of you?
Roberta: The market is a big focus but not our
main focus. We are actually launching a food and
travel blog in July (details to follow shortly on our
FB page). It’s going to be a little different with an
Anna Montali flare and we’re both very excited.
The market and our catering business will be an
extension of this.
SM: Where can people find out more about the
event/catering?
"The key to working with
anyone really is to practice
patience and to respect
each other’s strengths."
26
We currently have a Facebook page
www.facebook.com/perfectmatchmarket where
we post our monthly pamphlet and various fun
competitions. We will be launching our blog here
too so be sure to catch the big announcement.
Once that is up and running all info from catering to
markets to pops etc will also be available there. We
are also available on [email protected]
(feel free to join our database).
ISSUE 05