As a Board Member, this is especially difficult for me to write, but the decision has been made to close The Marketplace. It is not a decision that was taken lightly. The Marketplace was an extremely successful Christian fair-trade store. It excelled as both a ministry and a business for over a decade. I’ve written about The Marketplace a couple of times previously, here: The Marketplace and here: Revisiting The Marketplace. It was a true pleasure for me to have been involved with it for the last 8 years.
Without the amazing dedication and hard work by Marisa and Lou Sellman, the Marketplace would have never existed. They did an great job from the day it was created until today, creating, building, expanding, and keep up with constant changes. They did an incredible job, and I commend them for it. At closing, the Sellmans, through The Marketplace, will donate tens of thousands of dollars from the final sales directly to many of the artisans whose work The Marketplace supported. An incredible way to close the page on such an amazing ministry!
As it is closing, we’d like to make the ministry group websites available so customers can continue to purchase their favorite items directly from the groups individually. Each of these 38 groups were supported by The Marketplace, and they produce the highest quality products. You can rest assured they will not disappoint. I’d like to encourage you to learn more about their individual stories as well as their products. You can truly make a difference in someone’s life by supporting these groups, so I hope you find these links interesting:
- Akiru Project – https://www.theakiruproject.org/
- Asha Project – https://www.ashaprojectindia.com/
- Atelier Calla – https://www.atelier-calla.com/
- Azerbaijani Socks – https://azerbaijanisocks.com/
- Azizi Life – https://www.azizilife.com/
- Beeutiful Creations – https://beeutifulcreations.org/
- Community Naturals – https://www.community-naturals.com/
- Deux Mains – https://deuxmains.com/
- DuHope – https://duhope.org/
- Eden – https://thisiseden.jewelry/
- Freedom Studios – https://shopfreedomstudios.com/
- Freeleaf – https://www.freeleafltd.com/
- Haiti Design Co. – https://haitidesignco.org/
- Hemisphere Coffee Roasters – https://www.hemispherecoffeeroasters.com/
- Itara – https://www.itarastudio.org/
- Jacaranda Creations – https://jacarandacommunity.com/
- Joyn – https://www.joynbags.com/
- Mission Lazarus – https://lazarusartisangoods.com/
- Papillon Marketplace – https://papillonmarketplace.com/
- Prodigal Pottery – https://prodigalpottery.com/
- Purpose – https://www.purposejewelry.org/
- Rahab’s Rope – https://www.rahabsrope.com/
- Sak Saum – https://www.saksaum.com/
- San Lazaro Coffee – https://sanlazarocoffee.com/
- Starfish Project – https://starfishproject.com/
- Sueño Canastas – https://passion4guatemala.com/impacts/suenos/
- Sutisana – https://sutisana.com/
- Teze Handcrafts – https://www.facebook.com/tezehandcrafts/
- Thai Village – https://thaivillage.org/
- The Bead Project – https://thebeadproject.com/
- The Mighty River Project – http://themightyriverproject.com/
- The Wellhouse – https://www.the-wellhouse.org/
- The White Peacock – https://www.whitepeacockshop.com/
- Vi Bella – https://www.vibella.com/
- Zambeezi – https://zambeezi.com/
- Ziyada – https://ziyada.org/
- 2nd Story Goods – https://www.2ndstorygoods.com/
- 700 Rivers – https://www.sevenhundredrivers.com/
UPDATE November 27, 2023: The last remaining inventory of The Marketplace was donated to the fine folks at The WearHouse in Charlotte, NC. You can learn more about them here: https://www.thewearhouse.org/
