Brno Expat Fair: 91 nationalities met at their fair

On Saturday, 22 April 2023, Brno expats met at their fair. Over 1,300 foreigners and their friends visited the Brno Expat Fair. 91 nationalities gathered in one place!

The 4 floors of Tržnice (Zelný trh) filled up with expat-friendly clubs, communities, schools, services, jobs, and institutions. Besides them, expat-run projects showed off their creations and ideas, and on the courtyard of the Old Town Hall, their culinary prowess.

The feature picture is in honour of our amazing team of volunteers, without whom the event wouldn’t have run nearly as smoothly as it had. Because of their quick minds, quick feet and ready smiles could we all have such a great day. Thank you, our dear team!

(And a special thank you to Alejandra Rossell, who led the troops so very efficiently.)

Brno’s international vibe poured into Tržnice for one day

Brno tries to be a foreigner-friendly place, and we believe the City proved its efforts last Saturday. This is our thank-you to the Brno City Hall, for supporting the event, and to the companies that are part of the #brnoregion ecosystem and sponsored the fair: Infosys, Atlas Copco, AT&T, Honeywell, Kiwi.com, MANN+HUMMEL, Zebra. The day wouldn’t have happened without you.

We believe that the fair isn’t only about browsing through exhibitors, but about enjoying lots of the opportunities life in Brno offers on daily basis too. That’s why we built the expat fair out of the elements of what your ordinary day in the city can look like: a café, wine, beer, music and dance, trips and expat-friendly art, to international food, workshops introducing clubs and activities happening across Brno, and seminars led by local experts.

The day in a video

Take a glimpse into the day through the lenses of Danny Aboud, who shot a short video spot from the expat fair.

Remind yourself of the exhibitors

If you forgot to take contact details, you can browse through the list of exhibitors here, and through the program of seminars and workshops here.

If you only remember faces, not names, we’ve got you covered, too – you can browse through the gallery of pictures here.

This year, we were especially excited to see many expats among the exhibitors with their own businesses. Margarida Blossom with their journals, the Plant Method with their comprehensive approach to learning and teaching languages, Carlos Lopez and his photographs, and Cristina Merino with her little things, while the food fair was composed exclusively of expat-run culinary delights.

Save the date for next year: 13 April 2024

Though the date is subject to change, we’re aiming for a Saturday in April, still sorting out the venue (hopefully, it will be Tržnice again). To make sure to stay in the loop, subscribe to our newsletter.

Did the local Czech Brňáci learn the word expat?

This year, the expat fair spilled from the walls of Tržnice onto the courtyard behind it. We can’t know the exact number, but we do know that many passers-by stopped at the food festival there, and became accidental visitors to the expat fair. We left notes and explanations throughout the courtyard, as to where they had found themselves. Did many of them read it? Probably not. But they might have asked, might have tasted, and might have gotten a peak inside Brno’s multicultural community.