There’s a new pop-up market in town—or rather, an existing market with a new name and refreshed identity. Made By Us is a food-heavy, roaming outdoor market created as a pandemic-friendly way for small businesses and entrepreneurs to sell their wares. It was founded in September 2020 as Night Market Denver by KREAM Kimchi maker Virgil Dickerson, but he recently left the venture after facing assault allegations. The makers, however, are continuing the flourishing pop-up market, rebranding as Made By Us, and bringing their baked goods, sauces, flowers, apparel, gifts, and a slew of other products to hot spots along the Front Range each week.
“We want to leave that stuff in the past and move forward,” says Teagan Glass, owner of streetwear brand Efta Gram and one of the organizers of Made By Us. “The whole idea of Made By Us is in the name—it’s a group of all local, small, independent businesses. We’ve come together and collaborated to really make a market that gives cool, potentially undiscovered vendors a space where they can bring their passions to the people and show the city what they’ve got to offer.”
Made By Us is a win-win-win: Vendors have a safe way to sell their goods, market-goers discover great products, and the market hosts, like Fort Greene, Tessa Delicatessen, and Acreage by Stem Ciders, get more customers during a tough time. At a recent brunch market at Tessa Delicatessen, a selection of 30 vendors set up shop, but Glass says that Made By Us has more than 100 makers on its roster, with 100 more looking to get involved.
