Have you seen the CRAFT by World Market shopping concept yet? Rather than putting things you want in your shopping cart immediately, they show you products and they take pre-orders.
There’s a deadline for pre-orders, and if they get enough orders, they produce the item. If they don’t get enough orders, they don’t produce the item. As you see here, if you like this scarf, 68 other people need to like it enough to pre-order in order for you to have it.
So … do you like that idea? I’m not sure how I feel about it. A majority of previous items were not produced. Maybe this is a new idea that still needs to catch on. After all, buying through online auction at eBay was once a new strange thing. Someone was first with the online shopping concept of “membership” sites that offer very limited quantity (even one-of-a-kind) items and very limited time to purchase them, like GILT and One King’s Lane. There’s now a whole bunch of those shopping sites.
But with this CRAFT concept, I don’t quite get the feeling that if I don’t act now, I might miss out on something good. Because I need to depend on numerous other people to also act now. The items are really nice and from online photos they appear to be a higher level of quality, like this ceramic platter hand-crafted by Indian artisans:
But now I also feel a little blue and sad … some people put their heart and soul into creating this and what if it’s not popular enough and it’s not produced? I feel like I want to save its future, and save the artisans’ future! Help make it happen!!
So what are we supposed to do? What can we do? Buy a billboard pleading with other shoppers to please-please-please place a pre-order? Really, what can you do other than hope?
Check out this Hand of Fatima doorknocker:
As of this moment, it needs only 11 more orders and it will be produced. Whew. I’m rootin’ for it! Couldn’t quite get excited about the World Cup, but I’m rootin’ for a World Market product! But I wouldn’t place bets on this door, no matter how much I love these carved Indian doors:
Why? Well, it’s $499 and people are probably less likely to go for it. ?? Although I can tell you that getting a similar vintage or antique door shipped from India would cost far, far more so compared to that this is a bargain.
Hmmm … well, when I started writing this post, that Lalita scarf needed 68 orders to see the light of day. Now, it needs a few less, 65. So … here’s a close-up of the handiwork:
Head on over if you like it! Oh, and, because nowadays you never know with blogging, this is not a sponsored post and there is no commission if you click links on this post! And maybe with this honest post I blew it for any future sponsorships with World Market, which would be ideal for this blog and its global decor focus. But, hey, we’re honest around here!