The internet is great for so many things. You can buy almost anything, from anywhere, and have it delivered to your door. We've watched this amazing technological phenomena occur within our lifetime, and it's transforming how business and commerce is done. Online stores like Etsy have made it possible for artisans and crafters of handmade to even bring their creations to a global audience. We think that's pretty cool.

When we opened Make Good in the Summer of 2010, our little retail store in San Diego became a magnet for local artisans, crafters and makers of good. We suspected there was lots of handmade talent in the neighborhood. We had no idea though, exactly how much (holy cow there's a lot of talented people making stuff here). The creativity and imagination continues to amaze us.

We also found that folks in the neighborhood liked buying from other folks in the neighborhood. Yeah, they could run to a big-box store and buy some inexpensive stuff, but knowing that they're supporting a local artist, often meeting the maker of that item personally, seemed way different. A plastic bowl made in China and purchased at a big chain retailer will be cheap. And when that one breaks or melts from being left on the stovetop accidentally, it's cheap and easy enough to buy another. But the folks coming into Make Good seemed happier and more satisfied paying a bit more for a handcrafted bowl made from locally reclaimed wood by a local artisan, or thrown on a potters wheel and hand-fired the old-fashioned way, by a local artist who was formerly a Physics Professor.

Embracing and championing locally handcrafted items for Make Good neighbors grew from an idea into a deep passion, as we saw the win-win benefit for customer and artist. We got to know the artists' stories, and shared those with customers who were fascinated to learn about the person who made the item they were buying (and how and why they made it).

In bringing Make Good artists and their handcrafted items to the internet, we're extending the idea of local to a global realm. As many people come to visit or live in San Diego, many have moved away, yet still want to buy locally handcrafted items from San Diego and Tijuana (or Tijuego, as some refer to our collective cities that really function as one). Others receive gifts from our neighbors, sent to faraway places, and wish to buy from these local artisans at Make Good. Selling online seemed a logical way to help make that happen.

So while we're selling to a global audience, sales at Make Good's online shop benefit some passionate folks here in San Diego + Tijuana in practical ways. It lifts the neighborhood, provides local artists much-needed revenue, and provides a platform for the locally handcrafted good happening in our neighborhood to reach a bigger audience.

Thanks for reading, and shopping at Make Good.