Frequently asked questions

MakerRoute is a hyper-local marketplace for independent makers — farmers-market vendors, boutique creators, and high-ticket artisans. Today, makers host their shops from their own homes and business locations and fulfill orders directly: pickup, local delivery, or shipping. Next on the roadmap is our micro-fulfillment hub — a secure, climate-controlled home for maker inventory with under-an-hour local delivery.

Each shop chooses how it fulfills: pickup at the maker's location (the exact address is shared right after checkout), local delivery by the maker for a fee they set, or flat-fee shipping. Orders are prepared directly by the maker, so turnaround varies and may not be same-day — made-to-order items like custom shirts and soaps show their crafting time up front. When our fulfillment hub opens, hub-stocked orders will be picked, packed, and delivered in under an hour.

While you fulfill orders yourself, selling costs a 12% commission on each sale — no pick-and-pack fee, no platform delivery fee, and no order minimum. If you deliver or ship, the fee you set is paid by the shopper and passed to you in full. When the hub opens, storage plans (Shelf $49, Standard $99, Gallery $149–$199 a month) plus a $2.50 pick-and-pack fee and a flat ~$5.99 shopper-paid delivery fee on a $35 minimum will apply to hub-fulfilled orders.

Yes — made-to-order is built in. Flag a product as made to order, set a turnaround window (say, 3–5 days), and add options like size, scent, or flavor with their own price adjustments. Buyers see the turnaround before they order and can leave you a customization note at checkout.

Only if you want them to. By default your shop shows just your city; the exact pickup address and your pickup instructions are shared with a buyer only after their order is paid. Shops run from a business location can make the address public instead.

A physical boutique booth in Arizona typically runs $300–$450 a month plus a 10–12% sales cut — and you still drive in to stock it and tear it down every weekend. Selling maker-fulfilled on MakerRoute costs only 12% per sale, and when the hub opens, storage starts at $49 a month with your goods sold 24/7 without you staffing a booth.

Of course — today your inventory never leaves your hands, so market weekends work exactly as they always have. Once the hub opens, it stays flexible: an authorized rep can check stock out any time for a weekday market, pop-up, or craft fair. Items scanned out are instantly delisted online and relisted when you bring them back. Withdrawing stock is free; bringing items back triggers a $15 restock fee per return visit, and your first return each month is free.

Every hub tier — Shelf, Standard, and Gallery — will include climate-controlled storage, AI-powered security cameras, a 24/7 secure drop-off, and tap-to-enter access control so only verified makers and staff ever reach the floor.

Yes. Every plan includes a branded MakerRoute-powered shop at yourshop.makerroute.com with your name, logo, and colors. For a $29/mo add-on you can point your own custom domain (shop.yourbrand.com) at it for a fully white-labeled storefront — while MakerRoute quietly handles the storefront, checkout, and payouts behind the scenes. You can run a branded shop, join the shared local marketplace, or do both.

Payments are processed securely through Stripe. When an item sells, the funds split automatically at checkout — your payout, the platform fee, and delivery are settled at the moment of sale, so there is no month-end reconciliation.

Yes. The facility will be fully climate-controlled and monitored around the clock by AI-powered security cameras, with tap-to-enter access control and ID-verified pickup. Every item is barcoded and spot-checked at intake, and high-value pieces can be stored in a secured gallery zone.

A traditional third-party warehouse stores your goods but gives you no storefront, no local shoppers, and no delivery. Online marketplaces give you a listing but no local focus and no path to same-hour fulfillment. MakerRoute is built local-first — shops fulfilled by makers in your town today, with secure storage and under-an-hour hub delivery next on the roadmap.

Farmers-market vendors, boutique and craft makers, and high-ticket artisans — from a $15 jar of honey to a $300 custom painting. The Gallery tier is built specifically for fine art and premium, fragile pieces.

Our pilot is live in Queen Creek, Arizona, where the first fulfillment hub will also open. Phoenix is next on our roadmap, and the model is designed to expand into new suburban markets under one national brand.

The marketplace is open now — makers can create a shop and start selling maker-fulfilled today. The Queen Creek fulfillment hub is opening soon: you can reserve your vendor space with a small deposit or join the waitlist for updates. Every lock-in deposit and contribution is 100% refundable if the hub does not go live as planned.