I Graduated from The Grand Bazaar Harvard University

Currently, the biggest problem for jewelers in Istanbul is the inability to obtain bullion products from the Mint. Due to the ongoing strike at the Mint, both citizens and tradespeople are facing difficulties. In this context, today, as a member of the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce Committee, a member of the assembly, a tradesperson, and a citizen, we call on the General Manager of the T.C. Mint and all our friends working there to end the strike as soon as possible. This will provide relief for both our citizens and our tradespeople.

Additionally, we believe that ongoing roadworks should be completed, and incoming tourists should not face difficulties in transportation. Furthermore, there is an issue with agencies misleading tourists. Before nine in the morning, when no tradespeople are open in the market, they show tourists the Grand Bazaar from the door and then take them away. This neither allows for shopping opportunities nor for experiencing the place. Our request in this regard is that tourists should be allowed to wander freely here at least between nine in the morning and two in the afternoon. It takes time and effort to explore and get to know the Grand Bazaar, which has a 600-year history and nearly 4,000 tradespeople. Everyone should be able to come and shop comfortably in this nostalgic environment.

Another issue that needs to be resolved is the parking problem in the Grand Bazaar. We ask our governor and municipality to solve this issue soon.

In the past, people used to come here to shop from as far as Pendik, Tuzla, and all over Turkey. Knowledgeable tradespeople from many sectors used to work here. I believe this was due to the apprenticeship, journeyman, and master system, with people growing up in the trade from a young age. Nowadays, this system has been replaced by people with financial power starting directly as bosses. This leads to the sector straying from its former quality. I believe that if we all support our bazaar together to correct all these issues, many things will change and improve.

As an association, we presented our projects regarding our problems to the Mayor of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and the Mayor of Fatih Municipality. We are awaiting their support. Recently, we met with the Istanbul Provincial Chairman of the AK Party, Aziz Babuşçu, and the Mayor of Fatih. We conveyed our issues and demands to them. In a conversational environment that included all tradespeople, the valuable administrators took notes on all the discussions and are working on them. Hopefully, the meetings will result in a positive outcome. This way, both our tradespeople, our citizens, and our bazaar will benefit.

Sometimes, when asked, I say that I graduated from Harvard University because the bazaar is a culture, a life, a great school. All Habergold readers should know that as İMKUSAD, we have started activities on behalf of our sector to keep this school standing. We are continuing our work with all our strength. Our goal is to revive the association and bring our bazaar and sector to better places.