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COLUMN: Creatique provides place for Okotoks entrepreneurs

A multivendor marketplace that opened last October on Crystal Ridge Drive, Creatique is an outlet for more than 60 local small and home-based businesses.
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Alesha Manning opened Creatique, her multivendor marketplace on Crystal Ridge Drive, last October.

As a business journalist, I’ve had more than one president of a large corporation tell me about the stress of being responsible for their shareholders’ money. But I’m not sure that’s anything compared to what an entrepreneur feels when they venture their own savings. That’s what Alesha Manning has done.

Creatique, her multivendor marketplace on Crystal Ridge Drive, opened last October and is now an outlet for more than 60 local small and home-based businesses. Her goal is to have 85 by year end.

Each vendor rents a product display space – a space being a shelf, floor rack or even a portion of a wall. Creatique keeps a percentage of the revenue it generates.

The universe of Okotoks folks making their living selling home-made crafts is surprisingly large.

“I think the pandemic changed how people make a living,” Manning said. “They had to get creative, both for their livelihood and their mental health. For many, this has become their primary source of income.

“If you work hard, you’ll reap the rewards,” she added. “However, self-promotion can be difficult. People don’t like to brag but to succeed, they need to become comfortable talking about what they’ve accomplished.”

There’s a bit of a story about how Manning got into the retail business. For the past five years she has owned and operated a business called Sudz n Such. It sells bath bombs, lotions and shower products online. But Manning wanted to run her own bricks and mortar retail space.

However, the barriers to entry were considerable. The cost of the storefront and overhead were more than she could ever hope to pay selling her own products.

“But I realized there had to be more people like me,” she said, “talented people with amazing products but nowhere to sell them. And here we are…”

Like many small businesspeople in Okotoks, Manning started by placing an ad on Facebook.

“Facebook is a huge deal,” she said. “It has been one of my best friends. I had multiple people respond to the ad, and it stimulated word-of-mouth promotion.”

At that point, one of Manning’s vendors, Amanda Connery, walked in. Connery makes laser-cut handmade gifts – home décor products, mugs, clocks and the like. She formed her own company while on maternity leave in 2017.

“My firstborn went to the pre-school where Alesha was the teacher,” Connery said. “When I found out she opened this, I was instantly on board.”

Creatique also offers coffee, croissants and other coffee-break fare. Manning sees this as a growth area, but is under no illusions that continued success is guaranteed.

“It’s hard to be a small business owner,” she said. “Okotoks is very supportive but there are a lot of hurdles – primarily financial – and being the new kid in town can be difficult when you’re opening a business. I thought I knew how much hard work it would be, but I’ve had to set boundaries or it would be overwhelming. I’m still learning but it’s getting better.”

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