Store creates safe space for international students
Common love for K-pop creates friendships on Quinpool Road
K-pop merchandise, plushies lining the walls, records, cards and an assortment of pins paired with the warm smiles of the sales associates at Sarah & Tom greet you when you enter the Quinpool Road gift shop.
“Originally starting off as a Japanese and Korean stationery store in Toronto, the demand for K-pop and K-pop merchandise made the business owners at Sarah & Tom diversify,” said Vern Hiscockcondy, a sales associate at the store.
Hiscock-condy hands over a bag of merchandise to a patron, and proceeds to help another find a pin they were looking for.
Jolene Xiang came to Halifax from China in 2019 and was in the city when the lockdowns were imposed. She found it hard to meet new people once the restrictions were lifted.
“In NSCAD ( the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design), a lot of my classmates already knew each other and, once the physical classes began, I found it difficult to make new friends” she said.
Store manager Natasha Wright said students come to the shop to find like-minded individuals who share the same passion and can discuss K-pop without feeling judged.
She has been working at Sarah & Tom in Halifax for more than six years and is instrumental in hosting their bingo games, summer weekly draws and other communitybuilding events.
“Halifax has students come in right from high school, making it an ideal market for kawaii (cute) and anime merchandise, as it is all the rage right now,” said Wright as she arranged K-pop albums on the shop’s display wall.
According to a report published in 2023 by the Association of Atlantic Universities, Halifax is home to 14,500 international students.
K-pop is popular in several Asian countries and the concepts that the artists pick are easy to relate to for a young demographic. Since some of the international students coming to Halifax are from Asia, this is a genre they are already familiar with.
Xiang, one such student, was looking to buy Pokémon plushies and K-pop cards and stumbled across the Sarah & Tom Instagram page.
“Now I have found a family away from home, that’s something that money could never buy.”
K-pop is a genre of music that originates from South Korea. Artists like PSY were instrumental in bringing the style to North America. Bands like BTS and Babymonster have brought attention to the genre globally. Blackpink was the first K-pop girl group to headline at Coachella.
“The catchy lyrics, fun concepts, creative outfits and elaborate sets attracted me to this music,” Xiang said.
Sarah & Tom’s bingo game has seen a gradual increase in attendees. Wright said that “the first bingo event had around 40 people and our last one had over 60 people who came into the store at one time.”
Livy Lile is a don at the University of King’s College and is also trained in peer support.
“Seventy-five per cent of international students face problems coming into a new country and making friends,”
she said.
Amy Francis, an international student from Antigua, is a student at Acadia University. Francis does not participate in activities that generally attract students her age.
“I do not play a sport. I do not like to go out to parties. I do not have the conventional interests,” she said.
To her, coming to Sarah & Tom makes her feel seen and that she is part of a community of like-minded people.
Lile said that “peer support that goes above the academic goals and builds personal relations is what helps students bond.”
She recounted an incident when a student was finding it difficult to connect, then after conversations and through teamwork the idea of an international students’ dinner came about. Students came together in an informal setting to meet and have a meal together.
“Having clubs and similar interest groups also helps students find their community in a new country,” Lile added.
For anyone interested in attending an event at Sarah & Tom Halifax, the shop has a summer event lineup planned. There will be updates on its social media pages.