Tanya Grimson (one of Ireland’s leading fashion stylists) and Maria Dublin (Interior designer) have come together to launch a unique online marketplace that is open to all that produce and design their own collections in Ireland. The website encapsulates the essence of Irish design with its boutique appearance rather than the standard look of an e-commerce trading platform, allowing sellers to have the feel of a stand-alone store. The website design was produced by an Irish artist with each element of the website, including the instructions, hand painted to provide a truly unique and bespoke platform for both the sellers and buyer alike.

All sellers will still have the opportunity to create their own shop brand and to sell their goods directly to the buyer, via the payment facility on the website, but without the overheads as Swoop charges only 5% (+VAT) for each transaction. Each buyer will have the ability to upload their own images for a minimal listing charge, and as special introductory offer Swoop is waiving the listing fees for the first three months of trading, to the first 100 sellers to open their shop.

The concept of Swoop was born over coffees and buggies as both Maria and Tanya were enjoying first time motherhood and on maternity leave when they realised that through their respective backgrounds in fashion and interiors and their genuine love for creativity and design, that not only was there a niche in the market for selling Irish handmade design but a true calling for it.  Individual boutiques were unfortunately closing down at the hands of the recession leaving handcrafters and artisans with no outlet to show or sell their work. While other distressing online statistics further ignited that cause, as the Eurostat report announced in March 2010, that:

• 62% of Irish E-Commerce Spend Goes Overseas

and

• 29% of Irish online shoppers bought or ordered goods and services from the Internet within the last three months. However, unfortunately the majority of the transactions were made with companies from outside Ireland – with 62% of the e-commerce turnover was received abroad (39% in another EU state, 23% outside the Union).

Swoop was created to counteract these statistics and to allow artisans the facility to showcase their work to a larger worldwide consumer audience, without any elitism of selection. All designers who make their own goods in Ireland can now have the opportunity to sell their wares on a larger scale while being promoted through the continuous PR organised for the site. Maria and Tanya are not only passionate about their industry and the people who work in it, but they feel more than ever that it is time to put Irish Craft and design on the global map, to connect the worldwide audience with the Irish design market and to make Swoop a worldwide one stop shop for all things beautiful, handmade and Irish.

For further information contact

info@swoop.ie

Tanya Grimson  on +353 87 6175815 / email tanya@swoop.ie

Maria Dublin on  +353 86 1031144 / email maria@swoop.ie