Cats Eye B+M Crowdfunding
Cats Eye Creative Reuse needs your support.
Help me open a Brick + Mortar Art Supply Thrift Store in Boise!
TLDR: I have 10+ years of experience in the creative reuse sector, as well as the passion and determination it takes to make this business succeed. I’ve spent the last three years building this slowly while working multiple jobs, and I’m ready to go all in, as it truly feels like my purpose is to serve my community in this way. Would you help me open a brick & mortar retail space for Cats Eye Creative Reuse?
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My Why
Hello! I’m Shay Haas, and I have a small online and pop-up art supply thrift store that I'm hoping to turn into a brick & mortar for the Boise community. Creative Reuse has been a large part of my life since before I even knew there was a term for it. When you grow up in a low income home, it seems commonplace to reuse your egg cartons as paint cups; or cereal box boards as canvas; or to make your own halloween costumes out of things you find around the house. Art supplies aren’t cheap. Therefore, they aren’t accessible to everyone. It is mainly for this reason that I’ve made the decision to start my own creative reuse business - knowing the importance of art making and creative self expression, and simultaneously acknowledging the monetary obstacles folks may face to get the materials they want and need to do so. I am grateful for the circumstances of my childhood. They fostered an immense amount of creativity and problem solving skills that have served me well throughout my life. But if I would have had access to a space like this - where materials are not only affordable and abundant, but also ultra inspiring - there’s no telling what I might have created. Aside from a desire to provide more access to creative materials, I also feel very strongly about the sustainable aspects of reuse and repair; and I believe that partaking in the circular economy and purchasing what we want and need through secondhand streams whenever possible is one of the easiest (and coolest) ways for us to act as stewards for the planet, and be responsible consumers.
This is who you're actually helping when you contribute... Little inner child Shay Shay. I've always been a dreamer. An artist, singer, writer, nature lover, entrepreneur, believer in good things and good people.
Aside from the plethora of anecdotal claims of the benefits of art and art making for mental health and wellness, studies have shown that making art can reduce stress hormones, increase self-efficacy and confidence, and help process pain and trauma to provide a path to healing. The world will always need art. And we will always need to express ourselves through it. It is part of the human condition after all…why not make it a little easier for everyone to do so? And in a way that can benefit everyone involved.
I Have LOTS of Experience
I studied Visual Arts and Design at the University of North Texas ‘09-’13, and during my time there, SCRAP Denton opened its doors. “An art supply THRIFT STORE, are you KIDDING ME?!” SCRAP is a Creative Reuse nonprofit organization that originated in Portland, OR in 1998 and they have a handful of locations around the country. The minute I heard about it, I signed up to be a volunteer. And over the span of 8 years, I went from a Volunteer, to paid positions as a Retail Specialist, the Education Coordinator, the Donations Manager, and the Volunteer Coordinator. I was obsessed with this sector of reuse. Still am. I love everything about it. Which is why my heart broke when I had to aid in the closing of SCRAP when the pandemic came through - right before I was to move to Boise.
I have since fallen deeply in love with Boise and feel strongly that it is my forever home - and I’ve never felt like that anywhere. And because it is home, I’m ready to plant myself firmly here and truly establish my legacy. Which is where Cats Eye Creative Reuse comes in…
Cats Eye’s Birth & Progression
After getting laid off from my first job in Boise as an office manager - again due to company dissolvence - I got inspired to return to my passion and my roots, and decided to start on the venture of opening my own creative reuse shop here in Boise. I began by raising $2k with a GoFundMe, and that helped me to establish my LLC, start an e-commerce site, purchase business cards, a printer, as well as some other miscellaneous things, and have a small savings for when I needed to get my first storage unit. In the beginning I was literally storing donations in bins under my bed and various closets and nooks through my shared home. And eventually, I was able to get a storage unit - and the donations haven't stopped coming in since...
The excitement when I took in my very first donation...
Humble beginnings and growth in the storage unit(s).
Our Mission
We aim to engage & uplift our community, and encourage sustainable creativity by being an accessible secondhand resource for creative materials, and affordable workshops.
While working two jobs and teaching monthly & sporadic paint classes, this is what I’ve been able to accomplish as the sole person invested in this endeavor…
Since August 2021, I’ve taken in over 4,000 pounds of donations - filling two small storage units. I’ve fulfilled dozens of online orders and have shipped to Texas, New York, Indiana, Alabama, Florida, Missouri and more! I’ve popped up at over 20 markets, including the Boise Flea. I joined a “creative reuse alliance” - an amazing network of colleagues in this exact line of work all over the country who have exchanged so much support and advice, and who have proven that this is a valuable community resource with outstanding potential for success. I’ve represented Cats Eye while volunteering for the Revive Fashion Show and Repair Cafe events in Boise. I’ve donated my time and craft materials to the Boise Brick House for their after school teen program. I’ve established myself as a City of Boise Community Partner for Earth Day and other sustainable events. And I’ve taught about 30 paint parties in order to save around $4k to go toward the progress of this beautiful dream of mine…
Our New Space
My storage unit has been bursting at the seams, so I recently got an additional storage unit. That one is now also bursting at the seams…It’s time to invest in a more permanent home for Cats Eye so that folks can donate, shop, and take creative workshops all in one space. After scouring commercial real estate sites day after day for months without any reasonable prospects, I was informed by a friend that the space next door to her business would be opening up soon. And after much effort, I have secured the space! It is THE best option I’ve come across in terms of square footage and cost, and would be an absolutely perfect space to start out and grow in. *More info on that location to come
Risks & Challenges
The deposit has been paid, so I’m gonna make this thing work either way! I’ve heard many times that small businesses often fail within their first or second year. Obviously, I want to give this thing a real fighting chance, so ideally I would like to avoid starting out in debt with a loan. But I firmly believe that with the initial help from reaching this start-up goal, Cats Eye will be operating at a self-sustaining level within the first year, and thriving within its second.
Not only do I personally benefit from the success of Cats Eye Creative Reuse, the Boise community (and beyond) benefits. And the planet benefits - even if in a small, grassroots kind of way. Your contribution would make all the difference. Thank you so much. - Shay