New platform comes up for crafts people

Muttrah: A new platform has come up to promote craftspeople in the Sultanate as a private sector initiative called Taiseer Platform.  Named Souq Zaman, the gift shop is located at Bait al Baranda and represents about 45 artisans, craftspeople and artists from all around the Sultanate. Reema Abdullah al Hadi from Souq Zaman explained, “The concept is to help new businesses, home businesses and artisans who do not have their own shops to market their products.” The location of the first shop is located strategically attached to Bait al Baranda Museum in Muttrah next to the Fish Roundabout, which is a popular site for tourists. “We have begun our venture towards the end of the tourism season but we have had tremendous response from the visitors,”pointed out Al Hadi. Some of the highlights of the products in the gift shops are handmade ceramic trays, pottery and handmade soaps by the visually impaired students of Omar bin Khatab Institute in Al Khoudh. “We have craftspeople from Dhofar, Al Dhakhiliyah, South and North Al Batinah and other parts of the country. We follow up with them through the social media and with calls for updating the stocks on a weekly basis,” she added. The added features of the platform are to sell the products online and through kiosks at shopping malls in the near future. “For the kiosks we will be specifically focusing products related to Ramadhan such as dates, honey, candles and more to do with Ramadhan décor. We are open to encourage everyone who produces their own handicraft products in Oman,” explained Al Hadi. All the way from Hasik in the Dhofar Governorate are woven bags made of palm fonts by Fauzia Faraj and lip balms, oils and rose water made by men and women from Jabal Al Akhdhar. While there are perfume oils, frankincense, bakhoor and camel bone jewellery from Dhofar, there are also high end signature perfumes, silver jewellery and designer handbags as well as artwork. [gallery size='medium' ids='543890,543892,543889,543893']