Having such a large number of outstanding local makers and retailers in Baton Rouge makes the choice to shop local easy. Between all of the clothing, gift and home stores open in the area, Baton Rouge residents rarely have to search elsewhere for what we need. That being said, one major downside of moving away from Baton Rouge is that it can be hard to continue shopping all of the local brands you’ve grown to love over the years. So in order to make shopping small a bit easier–and bigger–Meredith Waguespack, owner of lifestyle brand Sweet Baton Rouge and founder of Don’t Stop Just Geaux, has launched an online marketplace, Local Pop-Up, where a variety of Louisiana business owners can sell their products in one place.

We recently sat down with Waguespack and asked her a few questions about Local Pop-Up and her plans for the platform going forward:

What exactly is Local Pop-Up?

The mission behind Local Pop-Up is to connect local Louisiana creators, makers and artists with consumers in Louisiana. Over the past three years, Local Pop-Up has developed to a bustling family of over 50 makers and has hosted two Local Pop-Up marketplaces, showcasing our makers in our Holiday Pop-Up storefronts.

Fast-forward to 2020, and we now offer a year-round, online marketplace to make our vendor’s products accessible to their larger community of supporters. No matter how young, old, furry or fancy, Local Pop-Up Shop is sure to have local love for everyone!

What made you and the others you work with want to create the site?

After hosting both the 2018 and 2019 Local Pop-Up brick-and-mortar holiday shops, we knew the next step was an online marketplace for the Local Pop-Up family. So in January of 2020, localpopup.shop was born! The site will be constantly updated and curated with seasonal products and local favorites from our makers.

What are some of the best selling items on the site?

Since the site is curated seasonally, right now we’re seeing Mardi Gras items fly off the shelves. Mardi Gras-themed pet collars from Parish Pets and “Throw Me Somethin’ Mister” wine tumblers from Moneauxs have been instant site favorites!

How many vendors are involved with the site, and who are they?

LocalPopUp.Shop is constantly changing, adding new products seasonally and highlighting one-of-a-kind craftwork and art from our makers. With our family of over 50 makers, you will find something new and exciting in the online marketplace each week! Currently we have local products from Bushel and a Peck, Elohim + Nim, KourtneyPaints, and so many more!

What is one thing that has surprised you since starting Local Pop-Up?

We always knew our Baton Rouge community was incredible, but to witness the collaboration that our Local Pop-Up shops and events have helped create has been the most fulfilling. It’s also been so refreshing to see our family of makers share each other’s work. Collaboration over competition is alive and well within the Local Pop-Up family.

What do you hope will result from a site like Local Pop-Up? 

We would love to see the site grow seasonally and become a “geaux to” for Louisiana local love. In our first week alone, we shipped some local love to North Carolina, Virginia, Utah and Texas. It was exciting to have a flood of DMs from relocated Louisiana natives thrilled at the opportunity to support local Louisiana makers from afar. 

To check out more of what Local Pop-Up has to offer, be sure to check out localpopup.shop, or follow along on Instagram at @localpopup.