Make your mark: unique venues highlight a demand for hand-made goods.

• Author: Biton, Adva
• Position: Business Trends

Whether you believe that the internet is taking over retail, that brick-and-mortars are going the way of the dodo, or that next-generation, experience-based shopping outlets are the future, one thing is for sure: retail is an ever-changing landscape. While many look to new live/work/play centers as the future of how we shop and interact with businesses, others are looking at a smaller, but no less important, picture.

Makers markets--where small local artisans convene to sell their handmade goods, focus on building their community and expand their businesses--are becoming a national trend. And Utah, famous for its DIY culture, is on the forefront.

Creating a community

There are eager hobbyists with blogs and online stores all over the Beehive State, ready to interact with and support one another. From success stories like now-nationally sold baby moccasin company Freshly Picked to smaller vendors like handmade outdoor recreation clothing company Zions Den, local makers are everywhere. Now, thanks in part to markets and festivals like Craft Lake City or Salt + Honey, these makers have a place to reach out to their customers in person--and create a community with fellow makers.

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Ashley Collett, creative director of Salt + Honey, says the market was created not only as a place where local vendors of handmade goods could make money, but also where they could learn from one another. "I think that creative people in general like to support each other and create a community. That's something that we wanted to do, celebrate the people here," she says. "We want everyone to be successful and create something and to celebrate all the creativity that's happening in Utah."

Salt + Honey started in December 2015, setting up around 150 total vendors for three consecutive weekends in a space at The Gateway. The success of the initial market led Collett and her partners to do a spring market in May and another in late July--and they hope to expand the market into a quarterly event. Between 500 and 1,000 people come on any given day, she says, and vendors have had a blast getting to know their customers and each other.

But it doesn't stop there. Salt + Honey isn't just about networking--it's about expanding businesses the right way. Collett says they offer business classes to their vendors, so that what began as a hobby can truly turn into a viable small business. The spirit of entrepreneurship for the vendors is...