When Digbeth met Harborne

Sunday 23rd of June was a fun day for the people of Harborne and visitors alike. Not only was it the Harborne Carnival, but a new collaboration took place. For the first time, award winning Digbeth Dining Club came to Harborne and worked their magic.

The Harborne Carnival is a well established event with many visitors from the local area and further afield but this year it had a fresh new element. Thanks to the kind support of the organisers, Harborne Village BID (Business Improvement District) got involved this year by organising a pop-up event. Home Bargains allowed the BID to have the use of their staff car park and so “Harborne Dining Club” was born. It is the first time the BID has organised a street food event and they wanted it to be something all the family could enjoy.

Kate Smart, BID Manager said “Harborne is known for its fantastic quality food offering and we wanted to build on that. So we created a little oasis at the Harborne Carnival where families could hang out, eat together and play together. We were overwhelmed by the positive response to the event and of course, it’s always good to find out that you’ve got something right”.

Social media backed up Kate’s joy at the event’s success with comments like “it was a great addition and lovely atmosphere” and “ … it really felt like a community vibe, with people coming from outside Harborne too. Loved it!”

Harborne Village BID exists thanks to the financial investment of over 250 local businesses and so the BID is keen to see that the Carnival celebrates Harborne Village and all it represents. At this first pop-up some local businesses had stalls to show off what lovely local independents Harborne has. The BID also paid for a talented face painter to paint faces for free, provided garden games for families to enjoy and an opportunity to screen print bags and colour them in to take home.
The atmosphere was enjoyed by the traders themselves. Co-founder and director of Digbeth Dining Club, Jack Brabant said, “We couldn’t be more happy with the reception that our first ever Harborne Dining Club had on Sunday. We cant wait to work alongside Harborne Village BID again, and hopefully return in the not too distant future”.