PIECE NI: A NEW NARRATIVE
It sometimes takes an outsider’s perspective to realize just how special a place truly is.
Both Jenny Holland and David Laxer, Piece’s co-founders, are the perfect outsiders. One a New Yorker and former journalist and speechwriter, returning to the city of her childhood. The other, a Canadian living in Tel Aviv with a slight obssesion regarding the Irish ever since he saw Michael Collins (the movie). Together, they want to tell a story of a contemporary Northern Ireland, one with its eyes on the future yet also steeped in its own recent history.
Piece aims to package the 9 original counties of Ulster, its people, produce and practices into a household global name. Nothing goes down better than food and drink, yet they are not intending on creating your typical food magazine. Food is the excuse as it were, but the real reason behind Piece is to craft an engaging narrative of N.I as they see it – with all its quirks and quarks. Its people, its landscapes, its movers and shakers, its hipsters and its farmers, its rockers and its rebels, its growers and consumers.
Holland and Laxer have recently launched a Kickstarter campaign in Belfast to kickstart their project. They’ve teamed with talented local chef, Brian Donnelly, who brings extensive hands-on knowledge of the entire culinary landscape of N.I. The proceeds of the crowdfunding campaign will go to starting an online magazine and an online shop that will sell select made-in-NI products from food and drink to design and fashion.
“The concept behind Piece stems from a desire to help a post-conflict society move forward, away from a troubled past,” says co-founder and publisher David Laxer. “Coming from a place with it’s own troubled history, seeing how Northern Ireland has reinvented itself is really inspiring, but still today when people think Ireland they think Dublin. And for those who think Northern Ireland, they think balaclavas and thick accents. N.I has the making of the next organic heaven while Belfast has the making of the next Berlin. It’s rock n’ roll. It’s super exciting.”
“The quality of Northern Irish products is extremely high and getting better every year,” says Brian Donnelly, Piece director of product development. “I’ve worked with some of the best chefs in London and Dublin, and they are always looking for the highest quality products. They are starting to look to what we grow, raise and make here in NI.”
“We want to give our talented local makers and producers a voice on the world stage and an outlet for them to bring their products to market,” says Jenny Holland, co-founder and editor-in-chief. “We know that Americans will absolutely love what we are cooking up here.”
“We believe we have a global audience for this story and we know that the local makers and producers need a channel to communicate with the world,” adds Laxer.
The time to invest in Northern Ireland is now.
The small scale food and artisanal producers are some of the most dynamic and interesting businesses at the moment. Add to that the great cultural amenities and hospitality NI has to offer. They see huge opportunity. It’s an under explored place with great upside and provides great entertainment value for a global audience.
