Search Engine of Independent Retailers and Small Business Resources

Back in the day, it tooks lots of legwork, personal connections, and savoir-faire to find unique artisans for an indie boutique. The internet changed all that. Independent retailers need only travel to their computers to search for new talent.

Finding unique products has always been challenging for the independent boutique retailer. Shopping the labyrinth of aisles at trades shows and mazes of showrooms can make buyers feel as if you are looking at the “same old same old”. Nothing may seem appealing or fresh for your indie boutique.

Indie retailers are accustomed to digging beyond the surface to find treasures made by new artists and artisans. There are various sites that host stores for indie artisans. Many artists may want to only sell their own items directly. But if you find merchandise that catches your eye, you may e-mail the artist to see if they do wholesale work. Some won’t, and others may not have considered it all.

Your goal should be in finding unique, quality, never-seen-anything-like-this-in-any other shop pieces. Your goal should be to pay a fair price for the merchandise, but not take advantage of someone who is new to the market and may have under-priced themselves.

Under-pricing happens with with artists who have not factored in all the variables into their pricing structure. If you knowingly underpay, not only are you taking advantage of someone’s lack of savvy, but you are setting them up to fail in the long run.

Remember, most independent retailers like consider themselves having higher ethical standards in comparison to big box corporate America. Pay fair prices.

Many talented artists are using sites such as etsy and indiecollective to market their goods. Another source for talent would be the mother of all sites, eBay.

Use the web as another resource. If not for anything, take a look and see what creative and talented people are doing. It will both inspire and amuse.