How It Works
Grants, not loans. Simple terms.
A portion of every sale
Every product sold and every sweepstakes ticket pulled contributes to the Maker Grants fund. It is automatic, line-itemed in our books, and reported at the end of every quarter.
We vet the work, not the pitch
Applicants submit photos and video of their craft, a short description of what they would do with the grant, and proof they can deliver. Daniel vets every application personally.
Recipients get funded and featured
Grants range from $1,500 to $7,500 depending on the project. Recipients become featured makers on our marketplace and get direct help setting up their shop on the site.
What It Covers
The stuff that actually stops people.
A grant is not seed capital. It is the specific things that keep good makers stuck at the kitchen table instead of in their own shop. We pay vendors directly when we can, so the money lands where it needs to.
- Tools and equipment: welders, grinders, lathes, forges, mills, CNC time.
- First batch of raw material: steel, leather, hardwood, ceramics, whatever the craft demands.
- Workspace costs: first and last month of rent on a shop, utility deposits, safety build-out.
- Licensing and LLC filing fees, liability insurance for the first year.
- Basic product photography and a functional storefront listing on the Forge & Anvil marketplace.
Eligibility
Who we fund.
We fund craftspeople who make durable goods with real utility: knives, leather, metalwork, woodwork, ceramics, tools, small-batch mechanical goods. The work has to be yours, made by hand or with equipment you operate, and you have to want to sell it.
- Applicants must be 18 or older and a legal US resident.
- Work must be handmade or small-batch made by the applicant, not dropshipped or resold.
- Applicants must be ready to list and sell through the Forge & Anvil marketplace.
- Preference is given to people for whom the grant is the specific unlock for getting their shop running.
- Veterans, career-changers, first-generation small-business owners especially encouraged.
Timeline
When applications open.
Know a maker who needs this?
Nominations from customers, family, and other makers are how we find most of our recipients. Send us the person and the work, we will reach out to them.