Summer Makers Market Preview

The next Little Makers Market in Alaska is right around the corner! Summer market is next Saturday, July 27 from 11am-4pm in the Atwood Building at Alaska Pacific University in Anchorage. 

We’re excited to once again be a part of another amazing gathering of local makers and small businesses. Vendors will be spread out over two floors, food trucks will be serving up food outside and Uncle Leroy‘s Coffee is providing free coffee inside.

In this week’s blog, we’re bringing you a preview of some of the collections we’re bringing to the event. But before diving right into bags, we wanted to share a little background on this special market. 

If you’ve never been to the Makers Markets, they’re pretty incredible. The market was started by local maker Risha Toci as a way to meet amazing local talent and to support those who embrace a handmade/custom-made ideology. 

Her goal each time is to create a curated market with high quality work from various makers while incorporating a modern feel to the events. Not only does this benefit our community by occupying a previously unfilled niche, but it provides local makers, creatives, and small businesses a place to flourish.

Here are some of our handmade products we’ll have at our booth!

These handmade leather pouches are the perfect staple – in true minimalist style. These all-black, chic bags are a favorite with our military customers who can carry these in uniform.

A convenient pocket inside stores the essentials, such as a smartphone, i.d. or credit cards. We like to carry one as a clutch or use it to keep small items organized inside a larger tote bag. We also love how the pouches effortlessly go from day to night. These lovely bags are crafted by a talented Alaska designer who now lives in Seattle – she likes to remain anonymous and we’re so grateful she allows us to share her beautiful work with others.

We’ll have our Sword & Plough collection on hand at the market as well. Sword and Plough was founded by sisters Emily and Betsy Nunez, who grew up in a military family. Emily carried on their family’s military tradition and served as an officer in the U.S. Army herself. The sisters created Sword & Plough as a brand that repurposes military surplus material into durable and fashionable bags that people can use every day. They incorporate veterans into every stage of the business - from design, to sewing, management, fulfillment, sales, even modeling - to empower veteran employment. 

We discovered NLS Jewelry during our very first Buyers’ trip and have adored this jewelry line ever since then. We met designer Nicole Salerno in the up-and-coming designer area, and instantly identified with her mission to empower and inspire through her jewelry. Today Nicole and her team create handcrafted jewelry in the NLS Studio and we feature their pieces in our Off Duty and Household 6 collections.

We’ll have these collections and more at the market, so mark your calendars now to come see us next weekend. If you aren’t in Alaska or can’t make the market, you can shop online at wilcosupplyco.com or visit our showroom at The Boardroom. (we’re open next Monday-Friday 12-5pm!) 

Check out the full line-up Risha has put together – wow! Hope to see you there!

Bramble, AK
Christina Wilson Art
Lucky #9 Jewelry 
Rooms with Shrooms
Kayla Jane Designs
Alaska Concrete Collective
Double A’s Lemonade Stand
Artist Gina Edwards
Borealis Beadworks
Radiant AK
The Blushing Salmon
AK Aloha
Tufted Puffin Soap
Jellyfish Crew & Co.
Coddle & Cosset
The Cozy Mozy
Anchor To Arrow
Nowhere slow
AK Art &Design
Meg Smith Design
Alaska Wild Child
Raised By Woods
AK Chocolate Mousse
Good Drink
10 Cups of Tea
Woven in the Waves
Corso Graphics
Raeann the Artist
Temper & Forge Co.
BirdWings Chocolate
Art by Hailey Morgan
Wolf + Rove
Gathered and Grown Botanicals
Wildheart Magazine
Namaste in AK LLC
Crafty Girl Designs
Ashley Seabolt Originals
AK Cloudberry 
Amanda Rose Warren, Artist
WILCO SUPPLY
Elizabeth Ellis, artist
Turnagain Mud Co.
Cleanslate Designs
Labrador Tea
Akimbo Collection
B’s Knees
Little Fish Workshop 
Uncle Leroy's Coffee
Babycakes Cupcakes, Etc
K's Kitchen
The Smokehouse BBQ and Catering