There are places that do not need illuminated signs or big advertising campaigns to be the soul of a city. They are the small neighbourhood shops, the century-old bakeries, the haberdasheries that smell of history. If small businesses disappear, what will our towns and cities be left with? With this concern as a starting point, Emblemàtics was born, a radio programme that is broadcast every Saturday on IB3 Radio to give a voice to the establishments that give life to the islands and that form part of the ‘Emblemàtics Balears’ project of ADR Balears. That is why we have approached the creators of the programme to learn more about their project.
‘We wanted a space to recognise their value and tell their stories, not only from the perspective of the owners, but also from that of the customers and the impact on the community. What is there beyond the simple commercial transaction? That is what we asked ourselves,’ says Toni Travería, the driving force behind this programme, which premiered on the first Saturday of September 2024. Both he and his travelling companion, Joan Maura, have already made more than 30 programmes and counting, with the freshness and tone that precedes them.
The project began when Toni presented several proposals to IB3 and, of all of them, Emblemàtics was the one that resonated the most. Since the name already existed as a label of the Ministry of Business, Employment and Energy, ‘we spoke with the former IDI team, now ADR Balears, to be able to use the name of their project. They gave us permission and so we started in September’.
Beyond a weekly episode
Each episode is a journey through the history of an emblematic business full of peculiar anecdotes that leave no one indifferent. ‘The first broadcast was with Olleria Can Bernadí in Pòrtol, a business with more than 200 years of history. They told us that they received an order for Michael Douglas at S’Estaca and that the security guards almost didn’t let them in,’ Toni recalls the anecdote with a smile.
‘At Teixits Cardona, in Santa Eulària des Riu, we interviewed Salvadora, who is over 80 years old. She started speaking in French and we ended the interview speaking in that language. It was a lot of fun,’ says Toni, who also told us ’and her son Fernando told us a very good linguistic anecdote. A customer came in and instead of asking for some cushions, she asked for some bollocks.’
As the conversation progressed, we wanted to ask him if there was a story that had left a mark on him. ‘It would be unfair to choose just one. They are all unique and incredible! Choosing one might make me seem to belittle the rest, but that’s not the case. They are all special. To help you understand my struggle, many businesses are passed down from generation to generation, they are centuries old and have a huge impact,’ Toni tells us affectionately.
Although the programme is about shops, we wanted to find out a bit more about how the programme is put together. Joan tells us that one of the aspects he enjoys most is the atmosphere in the studio: ‘The whole team is incredible. Sometimes, in the middle of recording, someone makes a joke and we have a fit of the giggles and we can’t stop. As it’s not live, we try to make it as fluid as possible, but I think those moments of naturalness give life to the programme.
More than a programme, it is the voice of the community
On the future of local businesses, both agree that it is not an easy situation: ‘We need institutional support, but also citizen commitment. If we don’t buy from these shops, they won’t be able to survive’. Shopkeepers have also expressed the same regret. Sílvia, from the Sombrerería Casa Juliá, a shop with more than 100 years of history, explained on the programme that ‘many people come in and say to them “don’t close, we need you”. What we say is that these comments are good, but people also need to come in and buy. Shopkeepers live off their businesses and we need the money, like everyone else’.
Joan led us to a profound reflection: ‘I believe that contributing to small businesses has to do with the feeling of belonging to places, going to shops, buying food from here, etc. I’m not idealising it, but I think it has a lot to do with the role you play in your own life, in the place where you live’. To which he added: ‘I really like to travel, and sometimes when you do you get the feeling that you haven’t changed cities. There are certain streets where you say, if this is my neighbourhood! they are clones. I think we are moving towards a model of the city that wants the visit to be an experience, especially for tourists, and they forget that people live here. The cure is the small business,’ said Joan.
Because beyond the products, local businesses offer something that no large establishment or online store can replicate: ‘Personalised service. That warm greeting when you walk in, the conversation about how your day went, the recommendation based on knowing the customer. It’s not just about selling; it is about creating a bond. And that bond, that human connection, is what brings our streets to life and reinforces the identity of our towns and cities’. Both Joan and Toni emphasise the clear difference between these gems and department stores.
The message for the new generations is clear: ‘We live in an immediate world, where everything is fast-paced. But we must remember that we are who we are thanks to those who came before us. Our grandparents practised sustainable consumption, without calling it that. They used wicker baskets, returnable glass bottles… They didn’t generate unnecessary waste. Getting to know the emblematic shops is a way of valuing that legacy,’ reflect both Toni and Joan.
Regarding the future of Emblemàtics, both agree that it will last as long as it has to last. ’We don’t want it to become mechanical. If one day we feel it has lost its freshness, we’ll know it’s time to stop,’ says Joan. “But as long as there are stories to tell, we’ll be here, on the other side of the microphone,” he concludes.
We encourage you to listen to Emblemàtics every Saturday on IB3 Radio or on demand, because building a community is an act that begins with a story.