{"id":433919,"date":"2026-10-21T10:40:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T10:40:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/433919\/"},"modified":"2026-10-21T10:40:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T10:40:09","slug":"new-little-haiti-shop-preserves-haitian-culture-through-art","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/433919\/","title":{"rendered":"New Little Haiti shop preserves Haitian culture through art"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Patrons<\/p>\n

Shoppers are seen inside Tanbou Collective, a local Haitian and Caribbean gift shop and cultural boutique in the Little Haiti neighborhood of Miami, on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026.<\/p>\n

Pedro Portal<\/p>\n

pportal@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n

On a recent Saturday, a Little Haiti storefront just bigger than 900 square feet was packed. Kids moved around colorful paintings and handmade garments for sale. Vendors sold drinks made from fresh fruit and spices.<\/p>\n

The elimination of Temporary Protected Status<\/a> for Haitians has seemingly turned Little Haiti into a ghost town, and the temporary closure<\/a> of the Caribbean Marketplace at the Little Haiti Cultural Complex has left the area without one of its signature community spaces during such a pivotal time. But Tanbou Collective\u2019s storefront at 91 NE 54th St. is helping keep joy alive in the neighborhood.<\/p>\n

The collective is a group of 20 Haitian artists who are selling their work. Hollywood resident Sandy Dorsainvil, a curator for the collective, said she considers art to be the core of Little Haiti\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the creative people that will save its cultural identity,\u201d said Dorsainvil, 49.<\/p>\n

\"Patrons Tanbou Collective is a local Haitian and Caribbean gift shop and cultural boutique in the Little Haiti neighborhood of Miami. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n

The Caribbean Marketplace at the Little Haiti Cultural Complex will be closed for the next 14 months as it gets a new roof and other upgrades, but the neighborhood\u2019s creatives are still at work \u2014 and finding community during a time when it is needed the most.<\/p>\n

Francoise Penha, 55, is the co-owner of Spiced Hut Beverages, a mobile natural juice business that sells drinks made with ingredients like fresh ginger. Penha said that her father, Michel, was the first Haitian person to own a business on 54th Street, a clothing store.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always find myself coming back where he started,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"Weber Weber Pierre Louis (left) helps Francoise Penha, co-owner of Spiced Hut Beverages, at Tanbou Collective on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n

Other vendors at the shop see their work as a way to educate curious customers about Haitian culture. Myriame Pierre, 54, is the owner of Apparel Milou, a clothing and accessories brand that uses popular Creole sayings like Mezanmi, or Haitian Creole for \u201cOh my God,\u201d on items to get buyers\u2019 attention.<\/p>\n

Evelyne Blanchard, 59, an event designer and member of the collective, said she understands the challenges Haitian artists and their supporters are facing right now. Those who have lived in the U.S. with TPS, some of whom have been here for decades, are receding from public life, afraid of being deported to a country experiencing gang violence and instability. That affects both the vendors and their customer base.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of them are afraid to even venture out, so they\u2019re not able to showcase what they have,\u201d Blanchard said. \u201cThose out there that are able to, are not able to get the visibility because people aren\u2019t going out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Owners Owners Evelyne Blanchard and Sandy Dorsainvil pose inside Tanbou Collective on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n

Blanchard is hopeful the shop will have a steady amount of traffic, though she noticed how the ending of TPS significantly slowed down the number of people that shopped at the Caribbean Marketplace.<\/p>\n

As Dorsainvil attended to customers at Saturday\u2019s soft opening, she emphasized the importance of the Tanbou Collective to the local Haitian community.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you support the artists in our collective, you\u2019re feeding Little Haiti,\u201d she said. \u201cYou\u2019re supporting and nurturing these artists and helping the vision grow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Patrons Patrons seen inside Tanbou Collective, a local Haitian and Caribbean gift shop and cultural boutique in Miami, on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Michael Butler<\/a><\/p>\n

Miami Herald<\/p>\n

Michael Butler writes about minority business and trends that affect marginalized professionals in South Florida. As a business reporter for the Miami Herald, he tells inclusive stories that reflect South Florida\u2019s diversity. Just like Miami\u2019s diverse population, Butler, a Temple University graduate, has both local roots and a Panamanian heritage.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Shoppers are seen inside Tanbou Collective, a local Haitian and Caribbean gift shop and cultural boutique in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":433920,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[123,125,124],"class_list":["post-433919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-miami","tag-miami","tag-miami-headlines","tag-miami-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/433919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=433919"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/433919\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/433920"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=433919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=433919"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=433919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}