Thursday, December 27, 2012
If you can't join 'em, beat 'em, says West Des Moines-based Goodsmiths, an online "marketplace for makers."
Editor's Note: As the year winds down, Waukee Patch is looking back at some of the stories that made you talk, cry, laugh or just scratch your head.This story originally ran on May 20. ________ A little over a year ago, Julie Eliason found herself with an unusual problem. The West Des Moines woman was interested in marketing and selling a few of her handmade aprons online. Naturally, she consulted her husband, James, a software developer, about how she should get started. "She asked me, 'Where should I go?' so I sent her out to a couple different websites like Etsyand almost immediately she was frustrated with the whole process," James Eliason said. Etsy.com, founded in 2005, is the world's largest online marketplace for artists and …
Monday, December 3, 2012
Iowa is shedding its “flyover state” reputation.
Three Iowa companies – two of them in West Des Moines – are among five companies to watch on the Silicon Prairie, “ the hottest area in the country for tech startups that you never heard of,” the cable news network MSNBC said. Topping the list is the e-commerce marketplace Goodsmiths, founded by a pair of Waukee entrepreneurs that goes head-to-head with Etsy. It not only gives artisans and craftspeople the tools they need to sell online, but also offers an online community that's there when you need them. The social networking engine allows users to interact with one another. James Eliason co-founded the company with Levi Rosol earlier this year after his wife and other users expressed frustration with Etsy. Eliason said the Silicon …
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Goodsmiths, an online "marketplace for makers" held its official launch party Wednesday night at its office in West Des Moines.
When Levi Rosol and James Eliason founded Goodsmiths in 2011, the idea of a launch party was probably one of the last thoughts these two young entrepreneurs had in mind. Wednesday night, they got what was coming to them. Dozens of well wishers filled the Valley Junction office for the official Goodsmiths Launch Party. The technology elite rubbed elbows with fans of the start-up as well as family and friends of those who helped create it. At the party, Rosol and Eliason announced a few new features on the Goodsmiths website including a new group buying option and a forum for Goodsmiths users and sellers. For more information on the locally-owned and operated online marketplace at https://www.goodsmiths.com/.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
If you can't join 'em, beat 'em says West Des Moines-based Goodsmiths, an online "marketplace for makers."
A little over a year ago, Julie Eliason found herself with an unusual problem. The West Des Moines woman was interested in marketing and selling a few of her handmade aprons online. Naturally, she consulted her husband, James, a software developer, about how she should get started. "She asked me, 'Where should I go?' so I sent her out to a couple different websites like Etsy and almost immediately she was frustrated with the whole process," James Eliason said. Etsy.com, founded in 2005, is the world's largest online marketplace for artists and craftspeople interested in hawking their handmade wares. According to a recent TimeBusiness article, Etsy "gets more than 39 million unique visitors every month, and last year rung in sales of $525.6…
Deb Belt
2:02 pm on Wednesday, May 16, 2012
What a great idea, hope that local artists and crafters give these folks a try. more ›