Rare Things Beta

Rare Things, created by my friends Alvin and Emily, is a really fun way to discover independent designers and makers who make high-quality home objects, clothing, and accessories. They've done an awesome job curating a group of expert craftspeople across all types of products, and I love how you can see videos of the creators actually working in their studio workshops when browsing the products. It's kind of like if the best sellers on Etsy and TikTok had a super cute baby! I'm definitely going to be using this to shop for a Mother's Day present this week.

Hi Product Hunt, I'm Alvin from Rare Things. We want to make online shopping fun again 🧙🏻‍♀️ ✨ A creative renaissance is underway, but shopping on the internet is stuck in 2005. Millions of small business owners around the world have spent tens of thousands of hours honing their craft, bringing delightful products into our daily lives and creating value in our economy – yet the odds are stacked against them when selling their goods online. The contemporary creative class does not have the storytelling tools to properly convey the deep craft that goes into their work, which leads to immediate price comparison shopping and reduces the value of their goods. We believe these individuals and collectives – who often produce their products in a more sustainable and ethical manner – should be celebrated and rewarded for their human talents in our culture and in our marketplaces. We also believe modern consumers want to shop more thoughtfully – by buying high quality items from real people with authentic stories. With the Rare Things Beta, you'll find limited collections from expert ceramicists, metalsmiths, woodworkers, textile artists, leather crafters, seamstresses, and more – with fun short-form video content of their creative process. We invite you to step into their studio workshops around the world and see for yourself why their work stands out from stuff produced by big-box brands. We have lots of exciting ideas on where this can go in the future, and would love to hear yours too. Please let us know what you think – we would receive your feedback as a gift. Enjoy your visit 😊 – Alvin, @emhsia , and @blake_tandowsky Special thanks to @lenny_rachitsky for hunting us! 🙏

I dig the whole concept. Feels like a new market that’s genuinely difficult to curate or even find from the consumer side. Keen to see where it goes 😊

Loved the collection on the website. The way online shopping is taking shape, it is getting more and more mechanical process and it is difficult to know the people and stories behind those products. I love the fact that you have highlighted those stories above everything else, I felt a connect while going through some of those products. It can't be an easy task to curate such high quality products. How do you go about it, and how do you plan to scale it up? I can see there is a huge scope for such a product. Something that Etsy doesn't fill ?makers

A real treasure trove. 😍 @jacqvon this is right up your alley.

Beautifully-designed site, and love the mission. Excited to see where this goes - the potential is enormous - looking forward to being able to purchase a hand-made bag straight from a crafts(wo)man from a remote village in Italy, or ceramics straight from an independent maker in Taiwan, and feeling like I've met them in person. :)

As a maker, it’s increasingly valuable to show the hard work behind beautiful products and I’m excited for this platform’s ability to bring that to light.