CCB Magazine

THE NIGHTMARKET is a festival mix of design and fashion, vintage, lifestyle themes, art and music. At the end of April, it opened its doors for the second time at the Napoleon Complex in Berlin. We paid it a visit.
 

Text Boris Messing  

Already for the second time THE NIGHTMARKET came to Berlin. For two evenings and nights at the end of April, it presented itself, indoors and outdoors, on over 2000 square meters in the Napoleon complex, and enchanted its guests with design and fashion, vintage clothes and furniture, art and music. More than 50 different artists, designers and vintage dealers presented their collections. Among others, the Berlin room fragrance design brand 'Ultramonochrom', the designers 'Popeia' and 'Claudia Vitali' as well as the ceramic manufacturer 'Bigwind' were on display. In addition, there was again plenty of music to listen to and art to see.  

Mary Kannegießer has been hosting THE NIGHTMARKET together with her partner since 2016. It all started in Frankfurt a.M. in empty department store halls and built up over the years into an ever bigger and more sophisticated concept. Today, the market is Mary's main business. She says that she worked on the organization of the event for three months "from morning to night". But she is very pleased with the result. More than 4,000 guests came to her carefully planned and curated festival. Compared to previous events, the Berlin audience was quite young, she says. It was the mix of fashion, retro products, lifestyle themes, modern art and live music acts that makes the event a recurring success. 

During the day browsing and chilling...

The concept of THE NIGHTMARKET is always the same: It's "predominantly fashion" that's on display, says Mary, with "smaller and medium-sized brands" as well as more well-known brands. In addition, she always tries to set thematically interesting accents in the curation. This time, for example, there were various upcycling brands and a focus on body positivity. The latter in particular has come more into the focus of public perception in recent years. 'Nevernot', one of the better-known companies for gender-neutral wellness products, is one of the brands that took up the topic of body positivity at this year's NIGHTMARKET.

Katharina Rein, brand manager and PR responsible for 'Nevernot', explains that the idea of her company is to "look at sexual well-being in a more holistic way". Products from 'Nevernot' include period products such as the soft tampon made of foam, which, she says, they "took out of the dingy corner of the sex store." Other products include "classic beauty products", creams for the intimate area, "against razor burn and ingrown hairs", chafing ointments for women and various lubricants for men, such as a CBD-based lubricant gel that purportedly "stimulates the nervous system and increases the ability to orgasm". For 'Nevernot', Katharina Rein tells us, THE NIGHTMARKET is optimal for getting "direct feedback" from the mostly female customers. They were enthusiastic about her product range. Topics such as periods, sexual health and sexual well-being have been "strongly de-tabooed" in recent years, she says. No one is ashamed to talk about it anymore and to ask about their products. 'Nevernot' is "for everyone who loves to make love," she says, summarizing the company's philosophy.

...dancing in the night. Photos (all): The Nightmarket.

It is this mix of upscale flea market and interestingly relevant lifestyle products that makes THE NIGHTMARKET a much-frequented event. In the future, Mary Kannegießer wants to organize it twice a year in Berlin. She already has the curiosity of Berliners in her pocket for sure.