We are grateful that you are spending time on our little store and clicked on this article! Whether you shop often from local businesses and artists, or are just getting into it, here are some reasons to inspire you!
1. It's good for the economy. In most cases, the money you pay on an independent artist or small business store goes directly to the artist, with complete transparency. The more independent local artists you buy from, the more you empower them. When we buy local, our money stays local, and hence strengthens economy. Buying local keeps money circulating within the local economy.
2. You own an original piece of art. You are get something unique, something straight from the artist's studio to you. Every unit is made from scratch in smaller quantities, not mass produced. Hours and days are put into the design process and the focus of the business is first the art they sell and then the profit they make. Local artists mostly start selling their art because it gives them an opportunity to do what they love, while also paying bills. And that means the whole world to us!
3. Sustainability and ethical consumerism. On average, a small scale business or artist puts in a lot more thought into their packaging, and tries to make it as eco-friendly as possible. Materials are purchased in small batches, and constantly reused wherever possible. The goal is to produce less waste. Even though handmade products are more expensive than their mass produced counterparts, you know that the artists or makers are being paid ethically. Which is extremely important and constantly an issue with large corporations.
In conclusion, we urge you to shop from artists more often, you are contributing to a dream, empowering us, and motivating us to put more art into the world. Even if you can't afford to do so often, every purchase makes us smile and inspires us to do better. If you can't shop with us, show your support online, share our work on social media or in your circles. Keep our business in mind when you buy your next birthday, Diwali or Christmas presents! It means a lot :)