The Cooperative of Domestic Handicraft “Zemlja” has opened a sales office in the first of the four business premises situated in the alleyway of Danube Street No. 3 in Novi Sad, in the so-called The Old Crafts Alley. The opening of this facility was attended by a member of the City Council for economy MSc Goran Sečujski who said that he was especially pleased to finally see that the space intended for those engaged in traditional crafts has come to life.

-I am glad that the ladies of the Cooperative of Domestic Handicraft, with lots of enthusiasm and courage, have decided to expand their business by opening this new store, right here. There is still a lot of activity on the arrangement of the alley, in order to make it representative in every sense. In the first place, there is improvement of conditions for occupants, and landscaping of the alley and driveway. On the other hand, the promotion of the alley through the cooperation of the Tourist Organization of Novi Sad with travel agencies to bring tourists in Novi Sad, is still ahead of us – MSc Sečujski emphasized.

The Cooperative of Domestic Handicraft has a certificate of the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Serbia to perform tasks that are considered old and artistic professions and it has participated in numerous events where the richness and diversity of Serbia and Novi Sad were presented.

- The Old Crafts Alley is a small contribution of the City in promotion of the traditional and artistic crafts and traditional practice of production. This support is not enough, nevertheless, we are aware of that, and I expect all institutions in the City to be more supportive of the overall economy of Novi Sad in the coming year, especially of those who work in the tourism industry, because it is one of the few branches that is poised for continued economic growth in times of economic crisis. In this sense, Novi Sad has a lot to offer – the member of the City Council for economy pointed out.

In Novi Sad, there are about 25 registered commercial entities whose products are considered traditional and artistic crafts or domestic handicrafts, out of which they are mostly situated in Novi Sad, Petrovaradin, with Kać and Sremska Kamenica following the lead. These products include unique handmade jewelry made of precious metals, handmade parts for watches and clocks, products of hand-woven fabrics, copper-products, processed artistic covers, hand embroidered copies of icons and emblems, and similar products made in traditional way,  manually or mostly manually.

Goran Sečujski invited all citizens of Novi Sad with a certificate of the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Serbia, to come forward if they are interested to present their products to their fellow citizens of Novi Sad and to tourists, using the facilities of the Old Crafts Alley.

27^th December 2013