The United Aunties Market offers a curated selection of local art and crafts from Vancouver’s Chinatown. The marketplace offers goods like hand-bound journals, stunning handmade jewelry, and artwork. Shoppers can browse the online store and book a time slot to pick up their orders safely in Vancouver’s Chinatown at the Sun Wah Centre (268 Keefer Street). The company hopes to offer a shipping option in the future.
The platform was launched by husband-and-wife team Clare Yow and Leo Yu, Chinese-Canadian settlers residing in Vancouver, Canada. The company is committed to helping bring back local community support since buying goods from smaller producers in Chinatown has become difficult due to pressure from real estate developers. The pair are both engaged with the community and sought to bring a stronger co-op movement to the province, especially amid the stress of the ongoing global pandemic.
United Aunties Marketplace channels the auntie spirit, a person who "fights for our families and communities. Aunties carry cultural knowledge and master their craft in every aspect of life. They embody care, wisdom, skill, and guts." The company is dedicated to empowering the people in Chinatown "and beyond," and hopes its small scale solution can make a greater impact on a large-scale issue.
Image Credit: United Aunties Marketplace
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Curated Local Art
- Disruptive Innovation Opportunity: Develop a digital platform that connects local artisans with customers, offering a curated selection of unique products.
- Community Support Initiatives
- Disruptive Innovation Opportunity: Create a platform that enables communities to support local producers by providing access to their goods and services.
- Small-scale Solutions with Large-scale Impact
- Disruptive Innovation Opportunity: Identify ways to leverage small-scale solutions to address larger societal issues.
Where This Applies
- E-commerce
- Disruptive Innovation Opportunity: Implement innovative e-commerce strategies that support local artisans and their products.
- Community Development
- Disruptive Innovation Opportunity: Develop community-focused initiatives that empower local producers and encourage community support.
- Arts and Crafts
- Disruptive Innovation Opportunity: Introduce new technologies and platforms that revolutionize the arts and crafts industry by connecting artisans with a wider customer base.
