Today we’d like to introduce you to Atizay Shop.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
We are two childhood friends who were always passionate about art. We often dreamed about bringing art, culture, and diversity to the world. We were very hesitant but mostly excited when we finally took the leap in 2019 and founded Atizay Shop. It was our way to create a space dedicated to supporting visual artists in a variety of ways while also connecting art lovers from around the globe.
From learning new skills to adjusting our vision as we go, building Atizay Shop has been a very challenging and enriching experience. What started as something small that focused on helping artists tell their stories and sell art slowly evolved into a space that opened doors to highlight the work of underrepresented visual artists through the Afro-Costa Rican Visual Arts Gathering that we later rebranded as the Atizay Afro Visual Arts Gathering, welcoming Black visual artists and the Black community in the art scene globally.
Although we do not know what the future holds for Atizay Shop, we hope that every initiative we take continues to inspire and empower our artsy community.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not at all! As a small business, we still face challenges like not having enough capital to invest in projects and people that could help us better manage the different aspects of our operations. Doing this on the side has made it hard to stay motivated sometimes while focusing on other things, so we have had to learn tough skills like time management and prioritization.
On the other end, keeping up with new social media trends and tools and staying in touch with our growing community has been one of our biggest challenges. We have also experienced the disappointment of not receiving the support we expected from the communities we work with and for, and it’s been a journey to accept that our audience will organically take shape as people connect with our values and the work that we do.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Atizay Shop is an online art community and platform founded and run by two Haitian women, Christie Eustache based in New York, and Tamara Isaac located in Costa Rica. We provide visual artists with different channels to tell their stories and sell their artworks.
We are a one-stop art platform where we not only sell artworks but also highlight and promote different visual creators on our online gallery and blog. We consistently create intentionally inclusive and representative spaces through our annual events, which is one of the initiatives of our business that we are most proud of.
We also offer art consulting services to help businesses and people find artworks that best express the message they want their spaces to convey.
Regardless of your background, whether you are an artist or an art lover, we have got something to help you enrich your artistic experience!
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
We have both always been avid readers! We are constantly exploring new perspectives in different areas, such as self-help, business, and art. Sometimes we also like to keep it lighter with novels and some poetry.
Dare to Lead by Brené Brown, Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson, and Entrepreneurs in Every Generation by Allan R. Cohen and Pramodita Sharma are some of our favorite books!
We are both on a journey of learning new ways to take better care of ourselves and find a healthy balance that will allow us to do what we are most passionate about. Following the work of other creatives is one of our favorite ways to find inspiration and continue to grow in our industry.
Pricing:
- Art prints: $50-$350
- Merch: $3.50-$55
Contact Info:
- Email: info@atizayshop.com
- Website: www.atizayshop.com
- Instagram: atizay_shop
Image Credits
Andrea Solano Alpízar and Atizay Shop
