Etsy, Facebook Marketplace, and now Subvia: Micropreneurs are slowly eroding mass-produced goods, and the apps that sell them are on the rise.

• Author: Howell, Izzy

WHEN KAITLYN HORNE got word that her day job would be disappearing, she knew that things in her life were about to change drastically. The ski apparel company she'd been working at for years would be outsourcing all of its employees' jobs and as of 2020, she and her young family would be losing a substantial amount of their income.

Luckily, Horne had a side hustle--a jewelry line that she'd been working on with her childhood friend, Keeley Wilson. "I felt so fortunate to have our little side business--Onyx and Ash--because I'd just lost my job and then COVID-19 hit, so finding a job elsewhere would have been super stressful," she says.

In fact, Onyx and Ash's revenue doubled in 2020, making Horne's side hustle more valuable than her day job ever was. As it turns out, having multiple revenue streams can mean the difference between survival and destitution--especially during a downturn--but most people don't know where to start.

Enter Subvia: a new app designed to redefine hyperlocal commerce--opportunities to buy, sell, and connect with products and services right on your own neighborhood block. After speaking with both founders, Andrew Kruger, CEO, and Matt Moody, CTO, it became clear that Subvia's mission is more than about building a new platform: it's about giving people an opportunity to turn their passion into a profession.

THE MARKET FOR HOMEMADE, HYPERLOCAL PRODUCTS IS GROWING

The very foundation of Subvia is rooted in small, community-driven interactions. During the pandemic, Kruger and Moody--who are close friends and neighbors--had a chance to connect deeply with each other to discuss what a post-pandemic economy would look like. With more time on their hands than usual, they asked themselves where economic trends were heading, and what work people would look for in the future.

Inspired by their wives' inclination to shop for artisanal goods and services from hyperlocal platforms such as Etsy, Facebook Marketplace, and Next Door--they found themselves on the precipice of something totally novel.

"Our neighborhood has a pretty vibrant local commerce scene," Kruger explains. "There's a community of people providing services for each other, whether that's a neighborhood kid or an adult in the neighborhood who has talent or people buying and selling [artisanal] goods and foods."

That observation was something that led Kruger and Moody to a very distinct problem: individuals often want to support small businesses or side hustles in...