Jason Schoonover doesn’t plan to go back to school.

He’s one of the dozens – maybe hundreds – of young Columbia vendors who have carved a small business from a creative outlet.

After graduating college with a degree in art, Schoonover has been selling art and illustrations for nearly two years. 

He sells handmade magazines, comics, prints and other original art at comic conventions and local markets, such as the recent Dopamine Market at Bangback Pinball Lounge in Five Points.

​​”My strategy has just been to, like, whatever I’m making, just put it in front of as many people as possible,” Schoonover said. “That seems to have worked.”

Megan Tapley, who sells handmade ceramics, has a similar strategy. She sells cups, plates, bowls, trinket dishes, magnets and jewelry at one market a month, including the Dopamine Market. The cheapest of her wares is $1.50, and the most expensive is $60. In addition to her sales, Tapley works at Gemini Arts center.

Tapley appreciates the Columbia community for giving artists the opportunity to grow small businesses.  

“One of my favorite parts about small business markets is that you’re meeting who’s who the maker is,” Tapley said. “So not only do you get something that’s handmade, but you also get, like, the personal connection of knowing the person that made it, which you’re not going to get from, like, a big-box store.”

An item clientele might never find at box stores are Nikki Bracy’s horror paintings. Bracy owns a small business called Defiant Crafts, where she sells gothic-themed items. 

“Honestly, I have so many ideas, so many different things,” Bracy said. “It’s, like, never ending. I don’t – I don’t even have, like, a specific medium that I stick to.” 

Bracy’s goods include candles, dioramas and jewelry. What ties her pieces together is her enjoyment of the horror genre, she said. She wants to make the genre palatable to people by presenting horrific themes with a “cute” aesthetic.

Artist Alison Kimsey said people who sell handmade items must balance their creativity with what is marketable. She runs Lavender Bunn Crochet, through which she sells handmade crochet plushies. 

Kimsey’s highest-selling item is a possum plushy. While demand keeps the plushies in stock on her online store, Kimsey also experiments with selling more niche items – such as clown frogs. 

“People can tell what you’re passionate about and, like, what you genuinely enjoy making,” Kimsey said. “And so I’ve kind of shifted my business over the years to be more just, like, I make what I want to make and what I would want to keep.”

 Bangback’s event director, Rachael Ivy Talbot, organized the market, which featured 20 local vendors. 

Talbot loves handcrafted items and wanted Bangback patrons to enjoy that, too, she said. 

“The point is just making sure that people are feeling inspired,” Talbot said. “They’re seeing that people are making really cool things. You know, some people do it full time, and then some people just do it for a little extra. They’re literally just living, living out inspiration that they previously had and fueling it and passing it along.”