Syr Bazaar is often referred to as Syracuse University’s own spinoff of Etsy.com, an online retailer focused on selling unique handmade and vintage goods. Yet student founders Emelia Natalicchio and Gianna Foltz believe their organization offers products that are closer to home.

Syr Bazaar is an online marketplace that features art created by SU students, alumni and professors. Founded in May 2012, Natalicchio and Foltz began the venture after receiving an award from the Raymond von Dran Innovation and Disruptive Entrepreneurship Accelerator Entrepalooza contest, Foltz said.

“Originally, we went by the name Campus Bazaar with the intention of offering our services across all college campuses,” Natalicchio said. “We later scaled it down to Syr Bazaar to begin with a smaller group of customers.”

The organization featured its first on-campus pop-up shop on Dec. 5 in Marshall Square Mall’s IDEA Spot. The event continues through Dec. 6, and showcases jewelry, accessories and artwork made by SU students.

A second pop-up shop will take place on the Quad sometime later this year, Foltz said.

Syr Bazaar had a temporary shop open at the Tech Garden’s Student Sandbox downtown, where businesses are given an opportunity for a trial run, but now the company is moving toward marketing more heavily on campus.

Foltz said the ultimate goal is to return back to the original plan of expanding to other universities under the name of Campus Bazaar.

“What I liked about Syr Bazaar was that it was very high end and design centric,” said Kristin Phillips, Syr Bazaar intern and SU student. “There’s a lot of freedom with startup companies like these, so when I get crazy ideas, everyone here is always open to them.”

Phillips began as an intern for the organization two months ago when she received an email from SU’s College of Visual and Performing Arts detailing the position. She said she plans to start selling some of her own products through the bazaar.

The process for showcasing products on the organization’s website involves a great deal of curating. The bazaar serves the artists’ needs by offering an outlet for exposure, as well as the buyers by providing quality, one-of-a-kind products, said Foltz.

The bazaar attracts work that students have produced for classes, Natalicchio said.

“There’s so much great portfolio work done by students that goes to waste,” Natalicchio said. “The university community was really lacking a place that featured original student artwork, and I think Syr Bazaar meets that need.”

Phillips said the organization is still figuring out its look and feel, but everyone involved shares a similar taste. Recently, Syr Bazaar has been reaching out to SU architecture students for help with constructing pop-up shops. The designs of architecture students have really reflected the high-end yet relaxed atmosphere central to the organization, she said.

Syr Bazaar’s next project is to line up student photographers to capture street style on campus and feature the images on the Bazaar website, Foltz said. Maintaining a presence on various social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook has generated a lot of excitement for the organization, and it continues to grow.

“Art school can often make actually selling portfolio work feel hypothetical,” Phillips said. “Syr Bazaar makes it a reality.”

SyrBazaar.com

Published on December 6, 2012 at 1:54 am