Mark Knijnenburg and his partner have created a platform to assist artisans that rely on incomes from markets; the platform will support them during the lockdown.
South Africa (30 April 2020) – With the lockdown, there has been zero chance to walk through the lanes of your favourite market sipping on a Gin and Tonic while soaking up the vibes and buying artisanal fudge, chilli sauces, candles and more.
These market weekends were starting to become a firm favourite as an activity to get out of the house. With these markets closing, the artisans that relied on the income from them have suffered greatly.
Mark and his partner came up with an idea to create an online market platform so people can still support the artisans.
They launched the platform to assist both small and larger artisanal producers.
“[We] started to support small (and larger) artisanal producers who usually sell their products at markets, in smaller quantities or who have been attempting to sell them through their own online channels now that markets and other public channels are banned during the pandemic. We’ve had overwhelming response and support, and have onboarded so many producers over the last few weeks that we can’t keep up with adding product.”
“We’ve also been trying to support smaller producers by buying stock from them where we can and not just waiting for orders to come through.” – Mark Knijnenberg
They are currently only able to ship essential items as per the regulations set in place by the government.
If you are an artisan and need a platform to earn your income, you can apply via their website here.
by 