Our hearts are filled with hope and thankfulness as we enter into a new year for the PA Wilds Marketplace.
This has been a year of continued growth, inspiration, and innovation for the PA Wilds Marketplace. The online platform was launched in 2021, and 2023 was a year where the marketplace found a solid base of makers who are selling their products and excited customers who are thrilled to be able to buy a locally handcrafted gift. In fact, there was more than a 30 percent growth in revenue in 2023 compared to 2022.
The year 2023 saw us grow to more than 30 makers on the marketplace. The new artisans on the platform who joined us in 2023 are Jenny Garrison (Yoga with Trees), Kevin Coolidge (Author of The Totally Ninja Racoons), Rebecca Patton (The Wild Botanica), Curt Weinhold (Curt Weinhold Photography), Rich Horner (Horner’s Pens), James Baumgratz (PA Wilds Murder & Mystery Books), Clay and Melanie Philips (Village Eatinghouse), John Esh (Goot Essa), Jill Forquer (Allegheny Nesting), Michael Hermann (Purple Lizard Maps), Don Luke (DLE Designs), and Stephen Brady (Brady Photography).
Longstanding artisans who were already selling on the PA Wilds Marketplace also experienced growth and innovation! Some artisans added new products to the platform, such as Ellen Paquette’s endangered species portraits and Patterson Farms’ maple gift baskets.
Certain artisans – such as Artwork by Julie Mader, Jillia Ceramics, and Stephanie Distler Studios – added PA Wilds-branded products, and a portion of sales from these products support the mission of the PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship to integrate conservation and economic development in a way that strengthens and inspires the rural communities of the 13-county PA Wilds region.
The PA Wilds Makers Market, hosted entirely on ShopThePAWilds.com for the second year now, made it easier than ever for shoppers to find their next “wild thing” for gift-giving during the holidays. Marketplace artisans added new products and held special deals to encourage shoppers to buy unique and locally made gifts for their loved ones.
New eblasts were started that help to shine a light on the unique makers and products featured on the platform, in addition to highlighting sales and other specialty groupings of products, such as those with free shipping or those that reflect Bigfoot (among many others!).
In the upcoming year, we’re looking forward to even more makers joining the PA Wilds Marketplace and adding their incredible products. We’re also thrilled to know that our current makers are already thinking about new products and designs to add in the near future.
Thank you to all PA Wilds Marketplace customers. Not only are you purchasing amazing products that show your pride in the Pennsylvania Wilds, but you are investing money into the rural communities of the PA Wilds and supporting these small business owners whose products reflect both their individual passions and the incredible places in the region they each call home.
We’re excited for all of the things that the year 2024 will bring to the PA Wilds Marketplace, our makers, our communities and our shoppers. Happy New Year!
