Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Gorman.
Hi Jennifer, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I moved to Northern Minnesota from the East Coast (State of Virginia) and never really felt like I had a place here, so I decided to make it myself. There are lots of great creative folx here but I wasn’t finding the meaningful connection with others and that was a big part of what I was looking for.
After a few years of trying to figure out what was missing, I figured I should just try and build what I was missing- maybe other people would be interested. The Night Makers Market was born out of the desire to connect and collaborate with other makers by bringing people, ideas, community, and creativity together in one space. I was looking for a market, or fair, or somewhere that I could sell my goods, but I didn’t find the right fit here in town, so I decided to make one myself.
I wanted a fun place to sell, meet up with customers, meet other makers, and have fun while doing it! I talked to a few friends and put together a small (4 vendors) market in a parking lot one evening last summer (2022). From that, we have grown to 2x monthly events at different spots in town with a list of more than 40 vendors that participate during the season.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Smooth – HA! Is anything in business ever smooth? Especially when you are doing something different than the status quo. I wouldn’t say it’s been smooth per se but it’s been worth every wrinkle, hill, mountain, and pit I’ve gone through to be here today. The biggest challenge has been executing my vision of a kickass market while helping other small businesses grow and evolve. I always say I would rather have a market that is small and filled with killer items than have a big market filled with mediocre items. Not everyone that applies is accepted, but everyone that applies and isn’t fit at the moment gets my honest feedback on how they can/could be a fit.
Another challenge has been gaining the trust of perfect strangers! I run the market differently than other similar events in the area and that means some folx get a little nervous. “Why is the fee what it is? What do I get out of this? How is this beneficial to my business? Why do you want to know that as feedback?” I am very clear with my expectations of myself and the vendors we work with and I think that has built a great community of makers, Movers, and Shakers. I think making the market successful has been built on honesty, kindness, trust, and fun. The vendors trust me to put on a great market, and I trust them to bring their A-game every single time.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
The Night Makers Market is doing it differently! We are the hippest handmade market in Northern Minnesota. The Night Makers Market was born out of the desire to connect and collaborate with other makers! The foundation of what we are doing is bringing people together, bringing communities together, and bringing ideas together.
We work to create thoughtfully curated, planned and executed markets for vendors and shoppers. When you sell or shop with us you will experience a well-planned event with great attendance, an awesome vibe, and very cool handmade and unique items. The Night Makers Market is working to provide a non-traditional retail opportunity for small businesses.
The Night Makers Market partners with a local non-profit each month and a portion of the vendor fees go to the chosen organization.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Two of my biggest supporters are makers themselves! Alissa Kovanen- Interior designer and professional box maker at The Wild Acorn, and Meredith Rothstein- watercolor and digital artist from At The Lake MN. These two ladies have helped me shape my vision, edited emails, and talked me off of a ledge a time or two. The Night Makers Market would not be possible without the physical and emotional support they provide every single market.
The other people that make this such a roaring good time are the vendors! We wouldn’t have such a great market if it weren’t for the awesome creative minds that come out (no matter what the weather is) and sell their products. So much love and sweat goes into each piece- I am lucky to work with such an amazing group of Makers, Movers, and Shakers!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @thenightmakersmarket
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheNightMakersMarket
