Salim Hassan,31, is the new marketing manager at the River Market at Westminster Quay.
He is still getting his feet wet after only two months on the job, but The Record recently caught up with him for a chat about his background, his new position and his hopes for the River Market.
What follows is an abridged version of that conversation.
How is where you grew up, in the United Arab Emirates, different from where you find yourself now, in New Westminster?
I was born and raised in Dubai. I decided to come out to B.C when I was 17 to attend university.Dubai is very different from New West in that Dubai is not a walking city, everything is quite dispersed, and it is also a very young city. Being able to walk pretty much anywhere here, and come across cobblestone streets, and train tracks, creates this sense no matter how far you may have gone from your home that you are still home. Also, there is so much history in New West, and you can see that it is celebrated and showcased almost everywhere.
What are your main goals in your new position?
I want the locals to know about River Market-for them to know it isn’t what it used to be. We have customers who come here who still refer to it as “Westminster Quay Public Market”, and are surprised to see the positive changes that have happened to the market over the last few years. My goal is also to have more consistent visitors during weekdays and for people to know there’s a still lot happening right through the winter months.
What are some of the challenges you face at the Market?
Some of the challenges are things we can’t control. For example, trains and railroad tracks are awesome — except when they’re dividing you from the rest of the New West population. So getting people past that physical barrier can be tough so if a magical escalator were to appear, it would make our lives a lot easier.
What would success for the River Market look like to you?
Sometimes when I talk to people about River Market, if they don’t know what I am talking about, I compare it to Granville Island. I would like to see it flip the other way around where the River Market is used as an example to describe a destination. We say here that we would like River Market to be the best market in the world by 2020. It is a big goal, but why not have a big goal?
How do you see the River Market fitting to the rest of New Westminster?
I think New Westminster is at a tipping point of being the city to live in. It has history and now there are many new developments taking shape as more people are beginning to see the potential New West has to offer. River Market fits in perfectly with New West, because we’re both moving boldly forward with new tastes, activities, and designs while still embracing our historic roots.
What do you like best about working in New Westminster?
I really enjoy the boardwalk. I am a certified personal trainer too so, I love walking along it on my lunch break—doubles as a great way to work off all the good food I have been having at the market since I have joined. The boardwalk feels like your own private spot at times, and no one feels like a stranger, you always get the casual greeting or nod.
What is coming up at the River Market that you are working on?
There are big celebrations here in conjunction with the Hyack Association for Canada Day. There will be circus performances by Vancouver Circus School, children’s activities by Music Box and fireworks. It is one of our busiest days of the year and we’re expecting about 5,000 people. We also are working on a project this summer that involves about 50,000 pieces of Lego, stay tuned for more on that.
For more on information on the River Market go to rivermarket.ca
