Cay Collective — rethinking the marketplace for handmade art and design

Location: Stockholm, operating across Europe

Date: Founded 2023, expanding rapidly in 2025

Project: Cay Collective, a digital platform for curated handmade art, design, and fashion

Why it Matters: Challenges the gallery system and mass-market platforms by giving independent creators visibility, fair terms, and direct access to buyers

Cay Collective describes itself as a digital marketplace, but in practice it functions more like a creative community. Founded by Johanna Gauffin and Natalie Navia, the platform gathers more than 400 artists, designers, and makers across Europe, each working on a small scale and with a focus on handcraft. Their selection cuts through the noise of mass production, highlighting pieces that are not only unique but also tied to the story of the person who made them.

Johanna Gauffin and Natalie Navia

The idea grew out of a contradiction: the founders studied at the Stockholm School of Economics, immersed in the culture of numbers and performance, while privately turning to sewing, knitting, and handcraft to counterbalance the pressure. What began as a way to manage stress developed into a framework for thinking about the gap between creativity and commerce — a gap that Cay Collective now tries to bridge.

Unlike Etsy, its closest comparison, Cay Collective applies a curatorial lens. Every maker is invited rather than self-enrolled, and the platform takes a share only when a product is sold. The focus is less on volume than on preserving a sense of authorship and intimacy in a system that usually erodes both. That model has proven effective: the platform has grown quickly, drawn investment, and staged physical pop-ups where buyers meet the makers directly.

Behind the scenes, the team is experimenting with technology to extend the reach of small-scale creators without compromising their independence. An AI tool is in development to help with distribution and discoverability, while new initiatives like DIY kits bring the ethos of Cay Collective into everyday use.

The project is ultimately less about building another marketplace and more about redefining what a marketplace can be. By combining digital infrastructure with a focus on human stories, Cay Collective suggests that growth in the creative sector does not have to mean homogenization. Instead, it can mean building systems that protect the fragile, personal qualities of handcraft while giving them the chance to circulate widely.

More info: https://caycollective.com/