Sometimes, the most promising opportunity is in a space that appears to be overcrowded and dominated by major brands. Like selling handmade goods. With Etsy and ebay and any number of other competitors, that may seem like a solved problem. But, then again, Google wasn’t the first search engine. It just entered a cluttered market and did the job better.
That’s similar to the challenge Leap Handmade is taking on. And now the Woodland, Washington marketplace is raising a community round on Wefunder.
Leap Handmade exists because the handmade economy broke in a very specific way. Over time, “handmade” stopped meaning what buyers thought it meant. Handmade marketplaces became crowded with drop shipping, resold cheap imitations, and mass-manufactured goods passed off as artisan work. Buyers lost confidence, and real artists were left competing in a system that was crowded and that no longer worked for them.
Since launch, the marketplace has grown to more than 140 active handmade shops, nearly 3,000 products listed, and around 600 registered buyers, with more than $32,000 in sales across 350-plus orders. Every shop gets reviewed by a real person before it goes live. Sellers keep 90% or more of their sales revenue, and Leap takes no commission on shipping.
The round is on a SAFE at a $3 million valuation cap with a $100 minimum. And it currently sits at $53,050 of a $100,500 goal. Julie Fredrickson of Chaotic Capital is leading the syndicate and has invested $20,000.
For more information or to participate in this financing round, visit Leap Handmade on Wefunder.
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