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Connecting local makers and crafters with buyers
We couldn't be more excited about the launch of madelocal.app. There have been plenty of ups and downs over the last six months since I convinced Dave to start building the site. Today I wanted to update you on one slight setback.
Due to Brexit, the payment processor Mangopay that we have been using in our test environment is no longer able to support us and therefore we cannot use it in the live version. This has meant a complete rebuild of the website and connecting to an alternative payment provider called Stripe. You may have already come across them if you order from Deliveroo, Booking.com etc.
We really want to offer the lowest rates to support small businesses like ourselves, however to maintain the current fees thorough Stripe will simply put us out of business. Therefore we have decided to apply a customer basket fee (similar to the supermarket) of £1 per order towards supporting the development of madelocal. We will collect and monitor feedback on this and if you have any alternative suggestions please share them with us by replying to this email. We really want to know what you think.
You may have noticed that there are a lot of new online marketplaces popping up offering a platform for UK makers and crafters to sell their products. We believe that madelocal has something different to offer from the local angle. Dave and I do this outside of our day jobs and we set the highest standards for ourselves. We want to get things right and it just takes a little longer.
The plan is still to launch in July (please, no more setbacks!) however the site will not be as polished as we had hoped. We will continue to take your feedback and work on this. For example we want to do more with the sellers’ profiles, finish the custom order section and address any other user feedback that comes in.
Please be assured that we will honour the introductory fees that you have secured by signing up before July. These apply to all transactions up to midnight on 30th September 2021.
I will be sending you instructions prior to opening the checkout so you can set up or link to your existing Stripe account.I can’t tell you how much it means to us to have you on board.
Clare and Dave