Jennie Mieklejohn wasn’t always a country girl. Coming from Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs, she always loved visiting the Paddington markets with her friends and marvelling at the weird and wonderful things that could be found there.
When she moved to Wagga Wagga, she missed the markets most of all. So she decided to start her own. She named her new venture “River & Wren”, after the Murrumbidgee River and her grandmother’s nickname for her growing up – Jennie Wren. From humble beginnings, it’s now been running for almost six years and attracts around 130 exhibitors each market as well as thousands of visitors.
Jennie’s market has a special ethos behind its exhibits, which she calls Make, Bake, Sew or Grow. People can only sell what they’ve made themselves – no third parties or mass manufacture here. She’s found it’s a great way to bring the community together, showing off the special skills and unique abilities of local traders.
Usually, River & Wren’s Mother’s Day market is one of their biggest – but this year it’s hit a snag. With COVID-19 causing event cancellations worldwide, Jennie was facing the prospect of having to miss out on a main event. Instead, Jennie decided to move the market online, and she’s been working with her team and exhibitors to make it happen. It’s this spirit of innovation, and the willingness to move mountains to keep the markets running come rain or shine, that’s made River & Wren the beloved fixture of the community that it is.
We interviewed Jennie about River & Wren for our Stories of Resilience podcast, which you can listen to below.
If you’d like to find out more about River & Wren, and when their next market is taking place, you can check out their website at https://riverandwrenmarket.com.au/ or find them on Facebook and Instagram at River and Wren Market.
