Isn’t it incredible to see the amazing things that artisans make, like Nicole welcoming attendees to the Trashy Holiday Market is showing?
Handmade artisans have a special ability to transform raw materials into beautiful finished goods. The skill to make something from scratch is powerful. There’s a growing segment of makers leveraging their talents to turn used items into something new and more valuable. This artform called “upcycling” is a crucial untapped asset in supercharging the circular economy and mitigating the effects of the climate crisis.
Our current system of consumption is built on a linear take-make-waste model where virgin material is extracted from the earth then manufactured into products that are meant to be trashed. It causes Americans to throw out 4.9 pounds of trash per person every day — that’s nearly 1,800 pounds of materials per American every year. This linear system contributes to global warming, air & water pollution, and consuming limited natural resources. On the other hand, a circular model is centered around reuse, repair, remanufacture, repurpose, and finally recycle.
It is also estimated that more than 3.4 million handmade artisans across the US want to build an environmentally responsible business. So, what if we unleashed this mighty source of creativity onto our linear waste problem? If each of these eco-intentioned artisans transitioned away from virgin materials – even partially – toward reclaimed, the handmade industry would become a powerful engine to shift our culture toward circularity. By sourcing used materials from our neighbors, we would help stabilize our volatile supply chains, build more resilient communities and strengthen local economies.
Nowhere Collective exists to bolster the handmade makers already committed to an upcycling practice and to empower others to start sourcing and transforming local materials diverted from landfills. In order to support these mission-based artisans, Nowhere Collective helps connect them to residents who want to responsibly purge reusable items from their home and to the 66% of US shoppers – as high as 80% among shoppers ages 18-34 – who will pay more for products that are aligned with their own values, like sustainability.
As a way to validate this premise, Nowhere Collective initiated the in-person Trashy Markets in Chicago in December 2022. At these events, they’ve connected 130 artisans with 5,300 Chicagoans who purchased $36,000 worth of upcycled goods across six Trashy Markets. At Trashy Earth Market in April this year, attendees were invited to bring materials to the makers, creating a fully circular experience. The makers who collected materials also sold the most goods because their contributors became invested in their process.
To build on this momentum, the Nowhere Collective team is now working on the Nowhere Marketplace app, which is the only site where users will be able to source and supply materials as well as sell and buy finished goods – all in one place. When an artisan lists their finished goods for sale, they can acknowledge their local donors of materials directly on listings. The donors are notified that their material has been transformed and they’ll be excited to share this story with their friends. This also gives shoppers peace-of-mind that the goods they’re buying are authentically sustainable and truly handmade because they can track the source of materials right from the listing. After a purchase, buyers will be encouraged to complete the circle by contributing materials to other makers.
Everyone deserves to experience the joy of creative reuse, whether you possess making skills or not. When the app is launched in summer 2025, Nowhere Collective will help create more equitable access to a culture of circularity.
Until the app is live, Nowhere Collective invites you to join the junky jamboree, especially on the biggest day of consumption in America, Black Friday. Here are some ways to participate:
1. Calling all Chicagoans! If you are in the Chicago area, you are invited to junk and funk at the Trashy Holiday Market taking place Friday, November 29 and Saturday, November 30. Shop with 35+ local artisans offering an array of uniquely upcycled, hand-crafted wares. Plus, enjoy more hands-on, trashy activities for all ages including clothing + pet gear swaps, kids creative reuse crafts, free gift wrapping, used material collection, visible mending and more! More details and RSVP here.
If you select the optional donation ticket, you are helping keep the Trashy Markets affordable for emerging and side-hustle artisans.
2. Promote #ReverseBlackFriday and tag @nowhere.collective on your socials by sharing how you are opting out of overconsumption and opting UP for reusing, repurposing, and repairing.
Activities could include:
- Join your local Buy Nothing, Nothing New or Freecycle groups
- Shop at thrift, resale, and salvage stores
- Support artisans who are already upcycling – find them at local handmade markets or search for them online
- Learn to mend or gift visible mending of a loved one’s well-loved garment
- Shop at local gift stores and bulk stores
- Revive a broken thing in your home by learning to repair (hey Youtube!) or search for a local repair shop or repair cafe
- Go outside, enjoy nature
3. Join the waitlist for the Nowhere Marketplace App. By adding your name to the list, you help validate that this circular marketplace is wanted and needed. This is an important metric to signal traction for funders, sellers, and the general public. We all sometimes need social proof to shift behaviors toward good.
Do you want to learn about other ways to plug into the upcycling movement? Contact katy@nowhere-collective.com
