Manifesto Market

Manifesto Market is a hospitality and proptech company focused on transforming underutilized urban spaces into vibrant food and culture hubs. Founded in Prague in 2018 by American landscape architect Martin Barry and his partner Hollie Lin, the company was born from Barry's non-profit, reSITE, which is dedicated to improving urban environments. Barry's extensive background in leading complex urban projects globally and his desire to create his own impactful venture drove the creation of Manifesto, which started by converting a neglected, derelict area in Prague into a bustling marketplace.

The company's business model centers on what it terms a "space-as-a-service" offering. Manifesto designs, builds, and operates food market halls, which it then subleases to independent food and retail vendors on flexible terms. This model significantly lowers the cost of entry for culinary entrepreneurs, as Manifesto handles services like utilities, maintenance, marketing, and customer service. Revenue is generated from these leases and the operation of its own bars within the markets. The primary clients are independent chefs and restaurant brands, ranging from emerging concepts to established names, who benefit from a high-retention-rate ecosystem that includes marketing support and data insights.

Manifesto's core product is the food hub itself—a curated destination combining high-quality, diverse street food with a rich cultural program of free events like DJ sets, live music, and film screenings. A key differentiator is its technology-first approach; its markets were among the first fully cashless venues in Europe, leveraging technology to streamline operations and enhance the customer experience. Partnering with payment platforms like Adyen, the company utilizes a sophisticated tech stack for seamless transactions and to gather data for personalizing the customer journey. The physical spaces are often constructed using modular and upcycled materials, such as shipping containers, and are designed to be temporary or permanent fixtures that can be reused, reflecting a strong commitment to sustainability, including being powered by 100% renewable energy.

Since its first pop-up in 2018, Manifesto has served over 2.5 million guests and expanded to multiple locations, including a major international opening in Berlin in 2022. The company secured a seven-digit equity investment from Rockaway in 2019 and later a $2.4M venture debt deal in 2021 to fuel its European and US expansion plans. Manifesto operates in the rapidly growing global food hall segment and has positioned itself as a scalable brand that revitalizes urban dead zones into community-centric cultural and gastronomic destinations. Keywords: food hubs, urban regeneration, cashless payments, proptech, hospitality group, space-as-a-service, street food, cultural programming, culinary incubator, real estate