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#Yourpound: Meet the Trader – Healthy Eaters

June 15, 2013… Save the date! Transition Town Brixton (TTB) is organizing an open day: a celebration of TTB projects including the Brixton Pound! We’ve decided to hijack the event and turn it into a ‘shop local’ day. We will be encouraging Brixtonites (even more than usual!) to support their local, independent businesses. We’ll have a number of stalls around Brixton, so come and meet us, set up your B£e accounts, and spend your B£s in local shops!

Since this is a celebration of local shopping, we’ll be celebrating our local businesses as well! We’re launching a new blog series called: “#yourpound: Meet the trader”. Over the next month, up to the 15th of June, we will write a weekly post on a local business where you can go and spend your Brixton Pounds…. And we’ll promote the business using the hashtag: #yourpound… Help us spread the word!!

First up is Healthy Eaters… a Jamaican kitchen at the intersection between Electric Avenue and Electric Lane close to the famous Fox and the Cherries.

thumb-2.phpAt Healthy Eaters, you can choose among a selection of patties (vegetarian and not), breads, cakes and Jamaican dishes… you can see a photo of some of their delicious food below.

thumb.php If you are in a rush, or if you are looking somewhere where to sit and have lunch, Healthy Eaters is the place to go.  If it looks busy, be sure to check out the downstairs where there are plenty more tables and seats.

Want to know more? Just ask Stafford, the owner. He first opened his stall in the market 2003, and the actual shop in 2009. His passion for food, especially for genuine food, is seen in one of Brixton’s most interesting businesses.

So what are you waiting for? Use your Brixton Pounds to buy your lunch at Healthy Eaters (simply use Pay by Text username ‘healthy’) … and let us know what you think on Twitter using the hashtag #yourpound

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Welcome Earth Medicines to Pay-by-text

We’re really pleased to welcome Earth Medicines as our newest pay-by-text business. Earth Medicines was established by Joe Pawson (see him below!) with a vision to provide the public with high quality herbal medicines at a reasonable cost.  Earth Medicines has a practice located in Tooting, where consultations take place in the tranquil environment of the herbal dispensary. They can also be found at Brixton Market Station Road every Saturday from 10am to 5pm.

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Earth Medicines market stall is unique in that it offers a free consultation service for simple complaints.  After a short consultation, where the needs of the client can be established and understood by the herbalist, the medicine is made up in the herbal dispensary and posted to the client.

Earth medincines sell a range of herbal teas and balms. Their lovely teas can also be found at another B£e business – Diverse Gifts.

So if you’ve not already signed up to Brixton Pound, pay-by-text – do so today and help support your local economy!

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Reflecting on how far the Brixton Pound has come…

susan_steed_webAs one of the co-founders of the Brixton Pound I’ve been involved in the project for the last 5 years. Over the last year I’ve been working part-time on engaging businesses with the scheme, a role which I will be leaving at the end of March. As I take a step back from the project (although of course I’ll still be involved as a volunteer and keen advocate) it’s a good time to reflect on what we’ve achieved and also what we’ve learnt.

I got involved with the B£ because I wanted to make money work differently. There are so many problems with current economic power, from the way banks work to the exploitation involved in global supply chains, and we wanted to create an alternative. The B£ aims to make money accountable to the local community and ask questions about where the stuff that we buy comes form – asking if it could be produced closer to home.

Have we achieved our aims? Well, there is lots to be proud of. You can now spend Brixton Pounds on your mobile, council staff can be part-paid in Brixton Pounds, there are over 250 businesses signed up to the scheme and you can even pay some local taxes in the currency.

Of course we would like it if B£s was better known and more widely used within Brixton.  Many of the other changes are much more long-term. Shifting our economy so we produce more in Brixton isn’t going to happen overnight. In many cases the role of the Brixton Pound is to ask what businesses would like to buy locally, and what people who live in Brixton would like to be able to make.

And once you start looking there is so much potential in Brixton in terms of the skills and experiences that people have. I’ve met so many fantastic people – from the people who have ideas and family recipes that they are looking to trade – through to projects such as the Lambeth Poly growing salad leaves on the Tulse Hill estate and Brixton Energy who are generating solar on the Loughborough Estate.  It’s also been fantastic to get to know so many of the amazing local businesses that are keen to find more ways to support the local economy. We’ve been lucky to work with special local organisations such as the Market Traders Federation, numerous fantastic local charities, as well as Brixton Blog, Makerhood and many more.  As there are more and more problems with the national economy and austerity continues we must continue to work together to create an economy that uses the talent Brixton has rather than pricing it out.

Although I’ll be less involved in the Brixton Pound it’s really just the beginning. The Brixton Pound is proud to be working with Lambeth council on a much bigger project looking at developing a Lambeth wide currency. So, if you’ve not yet opened your Brixton Pound account or want to get involved as a volunteer or sign up as a business then do get in touch with either Jamey or Mehul on 07840 497544 or email info@brixtonpound.org.  You can also find out more and join us for a few drinks in Kaff Bar this Thursday the 21st from 5.30pm.

 

 

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