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Chai Khana Print Book
Chai Khana Print Book
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Welcome to Malatia, The One in Yerevan

Author: Nelli Shishmanyan

Welcome to Malatia, The One in Yerevan
Edition: Bazaar
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The photo story you are reading is part of the Chai Khana archive. From 2015 to 2025, Chai Khana covered the South Caucasus, sharing stories from Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.

Malatia mart, is considered to be one of the oldest marts in Armenia. It has been open since 1991. During the USSR, there were livestock barns and the pastures. After the collapse, they stopped working, like the whole state economy.

Later, in place of the barns, the mart was created, which throughout the years expanded both its territory and the variety of products. The latter now includes not only clothes; here one can also find everything for the household with good prices. 

Malatia mart of Yerevan.
Some pavilions don't work either due to the lack of the clients, or the reformations in the mart.
There are curtain and bedsheet shops too, where one can buy in stock.
The mart has both open-air and covered pavilions, which have both their price and seasonal advantages and disadvantages. The monthly rent of a pavilion is 120 000 AMD (* 250$ ~).
It's hard to work in hot summer and cold winter days in these open-air pavilions.
In almost every pavilion one can see icons or anything that replaces the home warmth. Thus the sellers hope to have successful trade with the blessing of god.
According to the sellers, the number of the clients has gone notably down. Some have left the country and other now prefer the large trade centres.
Mrs Gayane has worked here for around 10 years.
There is a carpet market just next to the mart.
Here men can find classical suits to every taste.
Every department has its specific changing room.
Throughout the years, the seller's develop close ties between each other, share both joy and sorrow and celebrating the anniversaries.
There are also fast-food spots in the mart.
After the construction some pavilions will re-open with a new look.
The barns are mainly preserved and are used for the mart.
The number of the open-air marts is yearly diminishing; the convenient and lustrous trade centres have come to replace them.