MI Makers Box: The Secret's Out

A love of what's being made in Southwest Michigan brought together a group of people who want others to know what's happening here.

Their idea for getting out the word grew from the realization that though there was a lot of support for purchasing locally made goods here, there was little opportunity for local makers to be discovered or to have their story told.

So the team put together MI Makers Box. For an annual rate of $129.99, subscribers get four boxes shipped and delivered to their doorsteps each quarter. Each box is full of four or five products made regionally. The story of the person who made the product also is included.

"By sharing these boxes with the world, MI Makers seeks to passionately support the dreamers, the believers and the entrepreneurs who spend countless hours making high quality products right here in the southwest corner of the mitten state," says Cynthia Hernandez, managing director of operations and curator of the project.

MI Makers Box is launching at a time when handcrafted goods are making a resurgence in the United States. The work has even spawned its own form of political activism--known and Craftivism. The name refers to the idea of making your own goods as a statement against the bland sameness of mass-produced goods.

For the MI Makers team, however, the project is simply fueled by what they call an awareness of how much people from Michigan love what's made here. "I love how Michigan loves all-things Michigan," Hernandez says. "This is especially true in our Southwest Michigan community."

MI Makers collaborates with local makers to handpick the products, tell their stories, and market and sell each box. Before each box’s products and makers are revealed to the public, contents are kept secret until the boxes' recipients have the chance to open up their surprises and take the exclusive first peek.

The first boxes hit local doorsteps in March and they sold out. Inside there were goods from Lush Gourmet Foods, Pop City Popcorn, Confections with Convictions, Damn Handsome Grooming Co., Kalamazoo Candle Company and Van Buren Intermediate School District’s Paper Production Program.

"The response for the inaugural box from local and national subscribers has been great," Hernandez says. "Makers are already beginning to see new fans and even corporate sponsorships."

MI Makers works with C2 Brands, a not-for-profit, benevolent organization established to help grow communities through a variety of brands, programs and resources. Headquarters for MI Makers and C2 Brands are in Kalamazoo, though the team's focus is on the entire surrounding region across Southwest Michigan.

The MI Makers Box project, Hernandez says, is about "lifting up the small business community, sharing best practices, and making new connections."

And the project is not about those creating the boxes, but those who create what goes in the boxes and how together they can help Southwest Michigan thrive. 

Source: Cynthia Hernandez, MI Makers Box