FULL HOUSE
DAVID HENRY
Jiashan Lane Market Man Interview by Ned Kelly
Originally from Rhode Island, David Henry has been living and working in Shanghai for 25 years. Having taught English and Intercultural Communications at Shanghai International Studies University (SISU) for 20 years, 12 years ago he started a coffee roasting business, Jonas Emil Coffee Roasters. He’s also the man behind Jiashan Lane Market, which is back soon, COVID permitting. Time to catch up for a chat, we thought… How did Jianshan Lane Market come about? Back when we started the coffee roasting business, there were a number of expats in Shanghai that had started businesses in the F&B area. It was hard to find good ‘foods from home’ that we missed, so they got the notion to make and sell these home-style foods. Amelia Heaton-Renshaw’s Amelia’s British Jams and Chutneys, James Stockwell’s British Kitchen, Lexie Comstock’s Strictly Cookies, Lexie Morris’, Lollipop Bakery, Christine Asuncion’s, Spread the Bagel, the Pierogie Ladies, Ambrosia Dairy, Jonas Emil Coffee, Wine Guy. We made a pretty close-knit group. There were limited venues for selling these goods: school fairs at the few international schools in Shanghai at that time, women’s clubs and the like, and we’d see each other at these events. Then the Jiashan Market group opened a repurposed factory complex in the neighborhood where many of us lived and worked. They were looking for a European-style farmers market to bring people to their site, which was hidden away between Jiashan Lu and Shaanxi Nan Lu, and they engaged Amelia to organize it.
“It was hard to find good ‘foods from home’ that we missed, so they got the notion to make and sell these home-style foods“ When and how did you take over organizing the market? From the beginning, the market has been organized by one of the vendors of the market. Amelia Heaton-Renshaw was a charismatic personality who brought people together. She then sold her business, Amelia’s Jams and Chutneys, to Sarah and James Butler and they took over the market for a few years, and then they moved on to bigger and better things. It seemed like the market ought to be continued by one of the vendors. Part of what made it work was the almost communal spirit of the group. The market wasn’t quite big enough to support a dedicated administrator. I had been there since the first market and we had made it our business location for Jonas Emil Coffee, so it made sense to take on the organizing responsibilities. For people who have never been to Jiashan Market, what can they expect? Expect a small, intimate market. The courtyard holds 30-plus vendors. The space is not expandable. This creates a need for us to be selective in vendors to provide an interesting mix of quality products. Expect to experience the ‘Jiashan Vibe,’ a relaxed, familial feeling as friends meet over food and drink from our local food vendors while catching up on personal news since last they met.
What do you have planned for the next few months? First, getting past the pandemic. We just learned that we cannot open in September due to the recent outbreak in China. In Shanghai, markets are regulated by the district level Business Bureau. So regulations vary from District to District. However, we are optimistically planning for a good season starting in October. We are planning to bring back live music with artists like Lana Ra and Yusuf and Sarah Mou and Ismael, who added so much atmosphere to our markets last season. We are also planning to do themed markets. We had some exceptionally talented fashion artists last season and are looking into doing a special fashion market, probably as an additional market. The big news is we will have a regular monthly market at Ambassy Court. We have had several markets there in the past in conjunction with Ambassy Club events. It’s a lovely tree-lined location ideal for a neighborhood market. We’re also looking for another suitable location where we can hold a regular monthly market. > Jiashan Lane Market takes place every first and third Saturday of the month. Lane 550 Shaanxi Nan Lu, by Jianguo Xi Lu, Xuhui District, Shanghai
SEPTEMBER 2021 | 39
