LONG LIVE LOCAL
New Austin-centric online marketplace is a one-stop shop for all things ATX
A new online marketplace promising to make shopping Austin ridiculously easy has carted into the Capital City.
Nearby ATX, a digital version of Austin’s coolest shopping districts, is now open for business. Austinites can shop some of their favorite local independent stores and makers all on one hyperlocal online marketplace, add items to one cart, then have everything delivered to their doorstep.
Plus, Nearby ATX ships nationwide, making gifting Austin-centric goodies like pantry items, books, jewelry, and ATX-branded gear to loved ones a cinch.
Nearby ATX — essentially Amazon for Austin — is an offshoot of parent company Nearby, based in Oakland, California, that was founded by April Underwood (formerly the chief product officer at business communication platform Slack) in an effort to support the shop-local movement. Austin is currently the only other city besides Oakland where the Nearby platform exists, though anyone can nominate their city for a Nearby marketplace.
Currently, Nearby ATX, which just launched, already has dozens of shop owners, merchants, and makers selling their wares on the site, from well-known local commodities like Cuveé Coffee, Elevé Cosmetics, and Limbo Jewelry, to soon-to-be favorites like Eastwood, Fika, Flavnt Streetwear, and Redeemer Small Batch.
“Nearby ATX is a project that was born out of a deep and pervasive feeling that buying things online from giant retailers while my neighborhood shops were starving for business was bad for my community,” Brett Rounsaville of Nearby ATX tells CultureMap. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a novel from BookPeople, a set of earrings from Limbo, or artwork from one of the many independent artists on the site. If you live in an Austin ZIP code, then it will all show up on your doorstep, all together.”
In addition to offering local goods, Nearby ATX also helps shoppers learn more about the shops that make Austin so weird and wonderful, and introduces customers to shop owners and shares their stories.
It’s a more impactful way to shop online, according to the site, which notes that “a dollar spent locally does so much more than a dollar at some compound in Seattle,” and that “supporting the good people of Austin over some faceless big-box store just feels better.” We couldn’t agree more.
For more info on Nearby ATX, follow the marketplace on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for new shop announcements, exclusive giveaways, and special offers.
Austinites can also make suggestions about which of their favorite shops should be featured on Nearby ATX, and shop owners who want to join the local online marketplace can fill out an online form.