While I love the economics of building a business entirely online, there’s still something that feels hollow when I tell people that I make and run websites for a living. Maybe it’s the fact that a solar flare could wipe out everything that I’ve done (though you could say the same about an asteroid for any business). Deep down there’s a part of me that wants to build, market, and sell a tangible product. Unfortunately, that’s way harder than building a website. Maker’s Row plans on changing that. They’re a New York, NY based startup that wants “to make the manufacturing process simple to understand and easy to access.” While 3D printing is getting a lot of hype right now, almost all products are made by more traditional manufacturers. If you want to make something, you’re going to need to find someone to manufacture it for you. Maker’s Row will help you find them.

Make It!

I have a long list of product and business ideas. Some are terrible, and some are pretty good, but I tend to gravitate towards the ones that would be easiest to implement. That means that my ideas for tangible products are often left behind, while the ideas for websites stay in my head longer. I’d love to have a resource that would help me actually make something, and that’s exactly what Maker’s Row offers. When you land on their website, they ask you which part of the process you’re in: Ideation, Pattern-Making, Materials, Sample-Making, Tooling, or Production. From there you can find vendors who can offer you exactly the kind of help that you need. Right now the vendors on the site seem to skew heavily towards textiles and apparel, I’m sure that will change. You can read reviews and find the best manufacturer for your project. Maker’s Row is also offering a service Maker’s Row Pros to give newbie makers even more guidance. Here’s what some makers have had to say about their experience with Maker’s Row. If helping people with those kinds of endeavors sounds fun, visit Maker’s Row’s Careers page. Right now the jobs they have listed are a bit beyond entry level, but you should definitely take a look at the postings for Account Manager and Web Designer. There’s also a Marketing Internship available.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

• MakersRow.com
• Jobs at Maker’s Row
• Maker’s Row’s Team
• Maker’s Row’s Blog
• Maker’s Row in the News

What do you want to make?

We've identified Maker’s Row as having career opportunities in the following categories:

• account management
• all employers
• apparel
• design
• manufacturing
• marketing
• New York
• web development

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