Behind the scenes in Marrakech — May 2025

People often see the end result.

A colourful rug. A handwoven cushion. A basket that somehow makes its way from a small workshop or a corner of the Marrakech medina into a home somewhere in Belgium, France, Australia or the US.

But there is a whole world in between.

And it rarely looks very glamorous.

In May 2025, Tchaikana in Marrakech was once again my temporary home, office, warehouse — and occasionally something resembling a carpet depot. Tchaikana has been one of those familiar Marrakech places I keep returning to — a quiet base in the middle of the beautiful chaos of sourcing.

My days usually started over breakfast, with coffee, notebooks, lists and numbers spread across the table. What did I find yesterday? What did I buy? Which colours are missing? How many pieces? At what price? What do I still need to go back for?

Then: out into Marrakech.

And back again with more.

Finding is only the beginning

Personally sourcing a collection isn't simply about spotting something beautiful.

It is knowing where to look. Knowing who to ask. Comparing qualities. Feeling materials. Recognising the pieces that are different. Remembering what worked before. Thinking about what my customers will love — while still leaving room for that completely irrational I have to take this one feeling.

After more than twenty years of doing this, a lot happens instinctively.

But there is still a notebook.

Always a notebook.

And apparently quite a lot of carrying.

The beautiful mess behind SOUK

By the end of a sourcing day, Tchaikana gradually transforms.

Rugs appear in corners. Baskets pile up. Bags take over the room. New finds are unfolded, looked at again, counted and sorted.

Sometimes the laptop comes out on the terrace and the administration catches up with the treasure hunting.

Sometimes it doesn't.

And sometimes I just sit there with a rug I absolutely love and think: yes, this is SOUK.

That's probably the part of sourcing I love most.

A collection isn't ordered from a catalogue months in advance. It slowly takes shape around me.

Piece by piece. Person by person. Encounter by encounter.

Why I still do it this way

It would undoubtedly be easier to source differently.

But I don't want SOUK in the CITY to become disconnected from the places and people behind the objects.

I want to know where things come from.

I want to return to the same people. To discover someone new. To see what has changed. To talk, drink tea, negotiate, laugh, reconsider, go back the next day — and occasionally wonder how on earth I'm going to get everything home.

Because for me, personally sourced has never been a marketing phrase.

It's simply how I've always done it.

Since the beginning.

Marrakech, May 2025.
A little glimpse behind the scenes of SOUK in the CITY.

Human made. Personally sourced. Made to matter.

DISCOVER WHAT I BROUGHT HOME →