What Makes a Maker?

Makers often begin by trying to solve a problem, often only for themselves (like Vermont Lavender and eczema, Trenchers and dietary restrictions, or Vermont Evaporator and that maple stand on their property). After they find a way to solve it, they realize that what they have made can also help others. And a business is born.

Other times, the maker begins with a passion for something that they do especially well (e.g. Ananda and Ariel’s and Calabash for the land; Mixed Up and OWL Bars and Butterfly Bakery for culinary exploration), and then they find that the fruits of their passion are something others also enjoy. And, again, a business is born.

But this is not unique to Vermont makers. Makers and businesspeople the world over often have an origin story somewhere on the spectrum between problem solving and passion.

Likewise, Vermont’s makers, like entrepreneurs the world over, demonstrate a remarkable ingenuity and flexibility, an ability to adapt and innovate along the treacherous path between the time when an idea exists only between your ears and when you bring it into the world to have it tested. As Kate Whelley McCabe put it: “I think the most exciting thing that you can do is to make something where nothing was before.”

For all of that, there are at least two distinguishing characteristics about Vermont makers.

Cross-Pollination

Again and again, a critical chapter appears in Vermont makers’ stories where they gained expertise or experience somewhere in the wider world (Cox Violins in Germany, Trenchers in Italy, Vermont Marshmallow in Paris, AO Glass in Scandinavia, Cone Editions in NY, etc.) and then made very intentional decisions to make Vermont their home, because this was an inviting place to live and work.

This seems rooted in what all the makers share: an urge to create at the highest level, to get the best training, then perform that skill in the world’s best place to live.

“Our recipes have to pass my wow test,” said Alexx Shuman, of Vermont Marshmallow. “If I don't say ‘wow’ out loud, then we're not selling it. It's a high bar and it's very, very fun to tweak and get it from zero to wow.”

“Anything I make needs to be not only highly-functional, but also aesthetically pleasing and inspirational,” said Will Adams, of Honey Brook Tools and Woodworks.

Tim Aiken, the cheesemaker at Jasper Hill expressed it well when he noted that “there is no small detail. Every little step shows itself throughout the life of cheese… We have one way to get it right and a million ways to get it wrong.”

“Part of it,” said luthier Douglas Cox, is making useful and beautiful things, but part of it is also trying to make the world a better place and thinking that making useful and beautiful things and having them be as local and non-impactful as possible is a positive contribution.”

And this, Sam Hooper of Vermont Glove noted, is not always the norm. “Most companies out there these days who are driven by shareholder dividends or profits aren't going to do that. They're not going to go the extra mile to make the better product.”

“The reward is,” said Allison Wright of OWL Bars, “at the end of the day you know you've made something that people are truly going to love. And it's such a great feeling… I think we love creating something. Musicians love creating music that people enjoy. We love creating food that people enjoy. It's something to show for the end of your day, that's really satisfying and probably something a lot of people in Vermont can appreciate.”

“There seems to be something about Vermont that embodies individual creativity…” said Allison’s husband Seth.  “And an appreciation for it,” Allison added.

Community

Which brings us to the second way Vermont makers seem to be different. Their craft, their business, is deeply embedded in their communities. Because the scale of Vermont makes it more likely that the connection and support between maker and community goes both ways—Vermont is a place where you can tell your story and hope to be heard.

“The thing that I get really jazzed up about,” said Jenny Vascotto of Trenchers, “is the people who bring the pieces together with us. Whether it's our team with the chickens, our actual chickens, our wheat farmers. It's being able to create our own little community within one product and know that our product is supporting that community and then being put on a table and supporting your family in the same way.”

Vermont's really good at cooperation, said Ben Clark, of Ann Clark. “If we're not competing, we'll share resources and ideas… If you look at Vermont manufacturers, everybody here is high-end.”

Douglas Cox put it this way: “Part of my work is also trying to, well, help people grow, to give people an opportunity to grow, to have another story, another way of looking at things that can influence the way that they see their own lives. So that's part of the Vermont brand as I see it… Part of clients feeling that they have a relationship with the product is that it is not just a good product, but that they know the story behind it, and it feels good and it makes sense.”

Or, as Scott Kerner, the experience maker and full-throated booster of Northfield put it, “I really, thoroughly enjoy serving people and watching people's happiness through what we're trying to do. That's what makes you rich, right? It's not the money that makes you rich.”

With that connection to one’s community comes the joy and satisfaction in just making great things that others can appreciate.

Chocolatier Kevin Toohey, of Nū Chocolate says his goal is to create a company “where design meets delicious.” Coffee maker Scott Weigand says his slogan is “better coffee equals better life.” Furniture maker George Sawyer seeks to make chairs that will enrich people’s lives for 200 years.

“Ananda is a Sanskrit word that means bliss,” Melisa Oliva said. “For us, farming and sharing what we grow is bliss. It is to eat and live well, serve our community, respect the sacredness of the earth, and honor its gifts.”

“Why not have the things that are in your day-to-day life, and right in front of you, be beautiful?” said jeweler Jen Kahn.

Being a business person is hard, stressful, challenging work. And Alexx Schuman summed it all up when she noted that there is great satisfaction in “knowing that the thing that I'm sending out into the world is creating moments of pause and appreciation for people.”