The Internet has allowed artists to sell their creations all
over the world. But many sellers still yearn for face-to-face contact with
buyers. And many buyers like to experience the art up close and personal before
buying.

Solution: the pop-up shop, a distinctly modern phenomenon.
Here one day and gone the next, pop-up shops offer artists and craftspeople a
chance to interact with customers one-on-one. Add a festive air and a fun
location, and you’ve got the makings of a memorable event.

Organizers of the aptly named HAMMS Event certainly have the
location covered. Help A Minnesota Maker Succeed will stage a one-day pop-up
shop on April 20 in the shipping dock of the historic Hamm’s Brewery on St.
Paul’s East Side.

 

The Skinny:

• Fun Fact:  At its peak, the Hamm’s Brewery shipped four
  million barrels of beer a year.
• HAMMS Event
  April 20, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  713 E. Minnehaha Ave., St. Paul
• hammsevent.com
• Becky Sturm
• becky@stormsister.biz

The yeast that gave rise to beer has been replaced by art
giving rise to commerce – because HAMMS is a crowdfunding event. One vendor at
the event, chosen during a random game of chance, will get up to $5,000 from
ticket sales and donations.

“So many small businesses can’t afford a storefront. We have
online stores and we can’t afford a storefront,” said Becky Sturm, who
organized the event with fellow maker Sairey Gernes. “So we band together, find
a cool space, and go.”

HAMMS has signed up 35 vendors to date for the juried event,
with a skew toward fashion and beauty. But as an event aimed at “women, men and
dogs,” there will be pet vendors in the mix as well. Sturm hopes to sign up a
dozen or more additional vendors.

HAMMS, she said, is about art, commerce and a way of living.

“We’re people who make cool stuff,” Sturm said. “We’re
making a living doing what we love to do. But people are still shopping those
big boxes, going to all of these places where there’s tons of money for
advertising. We’ve kind of brainwashed the consumer to spend their money there.

“I hear constant frustration from makers: ‘When are people
going to pay attention to us?’ We have to deal with two generations of people
used to doing things a certain way. This event is all about makers supporting
one another.”