Petra Barran: Spicing up the Students' Union for 2021

UCL alumna Petra Barran is revolutionising street food in the UK, and we’re excited to welcome her to the Students' Union UCL Board of Trustees.

Petra Barran has an infectious energy. The food pioneer heads up KERB – an organisation dedicated to giving independent food a platform, and bringing vibrancy and community back to the streets. She graduated from UCL in 2015 with an MSc in Urban Studies. 

Petra was named in the 2016 BigHospitality Power List 100 and Time Out’s 2018 list of ‘50 Londoners who make the city awesome’.

Now, we’re delighted to welcome Petra to the Board of Trustees for Students' Union UCL. “In a world where students are looking to feel connected to something tangible, especially during the pandemic, I’m excited to bring a bit of KERB mentality to the Union,” says Petra. “Creating connection through food, and through spaces where people can come together over a shared love of food.” 

From the van to the streets 

Petra graduated with a BA in American Studies from the University of Manchester in 1995. In the years between then and the ‘aha moment’ that led her to UCL, and eventually to set up KERB, she took to the road in Britain’s first dedicated chocolate van. 

“My business was called Choc Star. I was driving the van for four years and loving it. But then I started to get bored,” says Petra. It was a fateful event in Barking, east London, that got her nose twitching for her next passion project. 

She says: “I remember very clearly. My co-worker Bella and I were chatting about the culture of Barking, and Bella mentioned urbanism and this book called Delirious New York by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas. I found it absolutely fascinating.” 

Petra went down a rabbit hole that led her straight to Urban Studies at UCL. “I realised ‘this is the next thing I’ve got to do’. I’ve always loved cities and how populations shift – there’s personality in places. I’d already started my Street Food Collective by this point, but everything around food and cities then slipped into place in my mind.”

Defining your space and giving something back 

Petra believes her time at UCL was instrumental in her business. She visited New Orleans for her dissertation research, and got a chance to experience the food culture there. And on her first day of the course, Petra sat next to Ian Dodds, who would go on to become KERB’s brand director. 

She says: “I hoped I’d get a job through the course because I was ready to jump ship from my van. But it actually renewed my energy and vision to practically apply what I was learning in my own way.

“The whole course was about putting the academic world into the real world in an interesting way, and for me, that’s how academia should be. It really gave me the intelligence and the ethos I needed to start KERB.” 

Since launching in 2012 at King’s Cross, the organisation has grown into a thriving community of food entrepreneurs, and hosts packed street food markets serving over 10,000 dishes a week across the capital. KERB also opened a permanent residence at Seven Dials market in 2019. 

After years of developing KERB, Petra reconnected with UCL in 2019 when she spoke at the Bartlett School’s Graduation at the Royal Festival Hall. Fast-forward to 2020 and Petra has recently been appointed to the Union Board of Trustees. “I want to look at how we can bridge the gap and dissolve the barrier between academia and work. I'd love to input on how to best connect entrepreneurial students with businesses. 

“It’s also how we make the union more loveable and more cherished. With the cafes in particular, how do we bring in interesting food offers and just make things more compelling?”

Carol Paige, Chair of the Board of Trustees, Students' Union UCL, says: “We are delighted to have Petra join our Board. Her passion and commitment towards decolonising food really stood out for us and aligned with our values. As well as being an integral part of our governance, Petra will also be bringing her fresh energy and ideas to help us develop our commercial strategy which will make sure that Students’ Union UCL remains the place where more happens.”

Moving forward 

Along with her involvement with the Union, Petra is excited to take KERB to the world. In January 2021, KERB Classroom launches – an eight-week, online course to help people get their food ideas off the ground. This is another step for the organisation to help promote success for young, independent businesses. 

“What I’d say to UCL students and new graduates is to define your own success,” says Petra. “It took me a long time to realise that success is not what someone else tells you it is. It’s what makes you tick and what energises you. 

“You don’t have to know where it’s going to go exactly. You just have to listen and trust yourself.” 

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