The holiday season is here, which means millions of consumers are out shopping. That means shopping online, shopping in-store, and for some Bloomington residents, shopping at local markets.
The Bloomington Handmade Market held its 11th annual holiday market at the Monroe County Convention Center last weekend, hosting over 70 local and regional vendors. Some of those vendors included metalworkers, candlemakers, and artists.
Bloomington Handmade Market even welcomed younger entrepreneurs at Saturday’s event. This year, the market even dedicated the ground floor of the convention center to businesses started by kids.
One of those businesses was Llamacorn Slime Factory, started by Maggie Hurley.
“It’s really fun because I like interacting with people, and I also like selling slime,” said Hurley.
Llamacorn Slime Factory founder Maggie Hurley explains some of the inspiration for her business.
According to event organizers, the market brought in about 4,000 visitors last weekend, and over $75,000 in revenue. That’s roughly $1,000 per vendor.
“I think retail in general is changing. The landscape is changing because of online retailers,” said head organizer Talia Halliday. With the growth of online shopping giants like Amazon, there have been a few challenges posed to small business, and even large-scale retailers. As Halliday puts it, “Quite frankly, we’re all pretty lazy and want to shop online.”
So what exactly draws people to the Bloomington Handmade Market? According to Halliday, bringing together a large group of small business in one place is an effective way to make shopping locally an easier process.
“I don’t feel like we’re in danger because of Amazon. Because we have things that Amazon doesn’t have,” said Halliday.
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Ultimately, the event provides consumers the chance to interact directly with the people they are purchasing products from.
“We get to share stories together and meet each other. I think it’s a great win-win for consumers who get to see a lot of different small businesses, and it’s great for us to get to introduce ourselves,” said Rodney Pittman, of Pittman Designs, a participant in the market.
The market has grown immensely since it was started in 2009. It started in a room in the Waldron Arts Center and now takes up both floors of the Monroe County Convention Center.
The Bloomington Handmade Market is held twice a year, once in the summer, and once in the fall, giving two opportunities for local small businesses to share their artwork and craftsmanship with the community.
