As we approach the winter solstice, the perfect time for this friends and family announcement is here! ❄️🌙🌞🌼
The solstice symbolizes the end of the old and the birth of something new, making it the ideal moment to share this exciting news! ✨
🌿This spring, we’re launching a brand-new online marketplace, and it’s been over three years in the making. It all started when the idea first popped into my awareness as a thought: “You know what would be really cool?” That simple thought grew into a vision, and since then, we’ve been taking tangible steps to bring it to life. 🌸
At the same time, I’ve been on a personal healing journey that most of you probably don’t know about. I became pretty good at hiding it—and hiding in general. For eight years, I lived with a disease, and I’m sharing my story now because there may be someone out there going through something similar. I want you to know that healing is possible. 💚
But before we get into that story, let’s focus on the exciting news ahead! 🎉
🚀So, I mentioned we’re launching a new online marketplace—this isn’t just another shopping platform. It’s a revolution, driven by passion, purpose, and a vision that goes far beyond just commerce.
The potential for healing and impact, both on an individual and collective level, is greater than I could ever imagine. 🌎✨
This marketplace offers practical solutions to some of the biggest challenges we face as a planet.
I’ll dive deeper into the specific problems we’re addressing soon, but first, let me give you an overview of what we’ve got in store.
Our marketplace is called Sustainable Trades (thank you to everyone who accepted the business page invite! 💌 find us here ➡️ https://www.facebook.com/share/19kxSBagZ4/?mibextid=wwXIfr), and an easy way to think about it is like Etsy—but with a purpose-driven twist. It’s similar in that members will create their own shops, but what makes us different is that Sustainable Trades was made for magic makers. 🌟
So, what’s a magic maker? 🧙♀️ It’s someone—whether an individual, entrepreneur, or small business—who creates goods or services with intention, something that’s good for both people and the planet. 🌍💚
Sustainable Trades promotes and facilitates localizing globally, with a key focus on regenerative farming practices.
We’re here to support a diverse community of creators: Think regenerative, permaculture, and organic farmers and gardeners; artisans and artists; sustainable small businesses; providers of healing services like massage therapists, Reiki practitioners, and breathwork facilitators; business support services like graphic designers, marketing etc; and natural building and green construction experts to name a few!
At the core of Sustainable Trades is our mission to Localize Globally 🌍—and while that’s the foundation, our future vision is where things really start to get exciting. But first, let’s talk about how the platform works. 🛒
Shop owners (or community members, as we call them) get to keep 100% of their cash sales 💵 and can also barter and trade with other members. 🤝✨
We offer two membership levels:
~Basic Membership: $60/year. Create your shop, enjoy unlimited listings, and access the message board. You can also barter and trade with other members. Transactions are finalized off the platform, similar to how Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace works.
~Pro Membership: $300/year. Includes everything in Basic, plus the ability to accept payments directly on the platform. You’ll also gain tools for managing your business, such as tracking order history, inventory management, accounting reports, and a shipping calculator.
You don’t need to be a member to shop. When you visit the site, you’ll be prompted to enter your zip code. From there, search results will populate based on your geographic location, making it easy to support local businesses and strengthen your community. 💖
Our Future Vision for Sustainable Trades is big, and it starts with the creation of Sustainable Trades Farms. These farms will be more than just places of business—they’ll be intentional communities. 🏡✨
Here’s the vision:
Imagine farms with beautiful housing options, where farmers can choose to live in eco-friendly homes made from natural materials like straw bale, adobe, or cob. The land will be alive with biodiverse, regenerative agriculture—food growing everywhere, from the ground up, creating living soil, wildlife habitats, and nutrient-dense crops.🌱🍎
Each farm will feature a farm-to-table restaurant that serves fresh, local food. There will be a school that goes beyond traditional education, teaching kids about ecology, natural building, and wellness practices. The farms will have the relaxed vibe of a resort, complete with a meditation dome and yoga studio for personal well-being. 🧘♀️🌿
These farms will also serve as community hubs—hosting events, concerts, maker markets, and offering a marketplace where locals can shop for produce. The goal is to create an environment where farmers can earn $80,000 to $100,000 a year, working just 30 hours a week, with two months off (we’ll have to negotiate the growing season, of course!). 🌻
Sustainable Trades Farms will be places of community and growth, where young families and individuals can work while discovering their true calling. These farms will eventually be popping up near you, bringing this vision to life all across the country.✨
A Personal Journey Toward Healing and Sustainability🌸
Hi, I’m Melissa, founder of Sustainable Trades. Today, I’m sharing something deeply personal, and it’s a story that shaped not only my life but also the vision for Sustainable Trades.
For 8 years, I lived with a disease that left me feeling lost, helpless, and disconnected. I went to countless doctors, but nothing helped. I was caught in a cycle of chronic stress, depression, and fear, but I kept it hidden from most because I was embarrassed—I felt like a coward who died a thousand deaths- I couldn’t seem to get a grip on my life, and healing seemed like a distant fantasy.😔
This cycle started after having my son, I felt forced to take a corporate job in solar energy to make ends meet. We left our off-grid home, and moved to Denver. Every fiber of my being wanted to be with my baby, but I didn’t listen to my body. I let my mind lead the show. The stress of that separation triggered something inside me—a stress response that took over my life for the next 8 years. I stopped sleeping, thinking clearly, and truly living. I felt like I was going f***ing crazy.
I was a freight train of resistance. I pushed and pushed and my body began shutting down.
There was a quiet voice inside, though, one that thank goodness kept pinging me, telling me to pursue something I loved: to become an entrepreneur and create a life of passion and purpose.💫
One of the most profound things I’ve learned is that our bodies are designed to heal themselves—but only when we’re in a state of rest, not stress. 🌿
For years, I lived in a state of fight-or-flight, my body was constantly flooded with stress hormones. It wasn’t until I started my healing journey, which started by simply asking the universe for help, that I learned that profound nugget of knowledge: all healing occurs when we are in the parasympathetic part of our nervous system, also known as rest and digest.
The parasympathetic state is the only time our bodies can absorb nutrients, detox, and repair themselves. Without this state of rest and calm, true healing simply can’t happen. To me, this is the ultimate mic drop and we all need to know it! 🌸
This process has been nothing short of transformational, and I share this because I know others out there might feel stuck in their own stress cycles or chronic illnesses. You’re not alone, and it is possible to heal. If you want to chat about it, feel free to DM me. I am happy to point you towards some resources to get you started. 💖
One of my mentors, Cathy Heller, often says, “The opposite of depression isn’t happiness, it’s purpose.” That resonates with me deeply because finding my purpose is what led me to healing—and to Sustainable Trades. 🌿💫
Our System is the Problem
Business as usual is unsustainable. The system—driven by the global economy and industrial agriculture—is broken. 🌍💔
The global economy is a continuation of colonialism, built on the exploitation of both people and natural resources. Big Agriculture destroys our soil and drenches our food in chemical fertilizers and pesticides, depleting both the earth and our health.🌱🚜
That’s why the solution lies in supporting and creating local economies with a strong focus on regenerative agriculture. This is how we heal both our land and our communities. 🌾🌿🌎💚
We’re going to dive deep into these topics! Stay tuned for more conversations about the effects of the global economy, the power of localizing globally, and the potential of regenerative agriculture.
We’re also launching a podcast soon, so if you’d like to join the conversation and share your insights, send me a DM! 🎙️✨
One Last Note:
When we launch this spring, we’re offering all Beta Testers a FREE shop for life! 🎁If you’d like to be part of our Beta Test (or know someone who would), don’t miss this opportunity. Just add your email to the form here, and you’ll be among the first to join the revolution!🚀🌿
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfgVuDKz8A8mFsf7RNKMIpLqax8l9wvLQiSV76jwtBhQCtfMw/viewform?usp=sf_link
#SustainableTrades, #LocalFood, #SupportSmallBusiness, #Rengenative Agriculture, #Localize Globally, #Community