It was hard for her, at the time, to realize the idea she conceived would come to full fruition, carrying through strongly this summer, growing as the fifth and final monthly Artisans Way prepares for September.
“It’s been such an incredible journey,” said Brianna Campigotto, creator of the Artisans Way. “I wanted to create a positive environment for local entrepreneurs who felt like they didn’t really have a place to go with their products. Since originally getting the Artisans Way together, I’m really proud to see all the different vendors coming out.”
One of those vendors, Cari Davis, from Mud Dog Creek, has been around since the first Artisans Way on July 9, 2017.
“We attend mostly artisans’ events in the area,” she said. “I love doing full-time vending. We made friends with Brianna through other artisans’ events and wanted to join when we heard of her idea. We pride ourselves on being a small local business and encourage growing along with others in the community.”
For Davis, the Artisans Way is another outlet for local vendors to get visibility within the community, something they currently struggle with, but she said the artisans’ community tries to be supportive for others sprouting in the area.
The Artisans Way is an outlet for local vendors to bring their creative, innovative, and new ideas and make them available for the community. From wares to art, to food, to jewelry, and so much more. Located at 377 Airport Road, across the street from Autohaus Stackelberg, Campigotto said she was so thankful for their ability to get such a quality location for the vendors.
“The biggest thing was the support we’ve had from Anthony Rota. He’s allowed us to use this lot for what we needed while allowing us to expand,” she said. “My main concern when creating the Artisans Way was being too limited, but we’ve doubled our vendors in the second month, and have been consistently growing since.”
“We have such a wide variety of vendors, people will be surprised by the innovation and creativity of our local entrepreneurs,” Campigotto said. “It’s been a good the amount of variety and I was really excited about providing that variety to the community. I was surprised over the summer when the vendors all trickled in—not all at once. A lot of my vendors have come from hearing from other vendors, as they search for a place to go.”
When she moved back to North Bay in 2015 after living in Ottawa for post-secondary education, Campigotto wanted to explore her art in her hometown community, but like many of the locals felt there wasn’t as much support as she had hoped.
So, she created The Artisans Way to help incubate and support the ideas of local innovations and creativity. North Bay was her hometown, where her family was, and where her community was, and she wanted to see it grow.
The Artisans Way outdoor market is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with the next one scheduled for September 10, 2017. Anyone interested in becoming a vendor can visit the website and contact Brianna Campigotto there.
