The Dowry Registry Offers Artisanal Decor from American Artisans
It’s always a joy to speak with Megan Green — friend, colleague, and founder of The Dowry, an online wishlist registry featuring artisanal decor made by American artisans. Not a newlywed? Not to worry! You can shop The Dowry like you can any other online marketplace. I am thrilled to give you a glimpse of Megan’s story and business. Enjoy!
Why did you start The Dowry?
I was trying to combat cheaply made, mass produced items. I'm all about recycling and not over-consuming. Even though The Dowry is a consumerist site, I wanted to provide an alternative to registering for mass produced items and focus on artisanal decor.
What is your curation process?
It looks a little different for The Dowry than for my personal home. The business is more operationally driven — we only source pieces from American artisans, and we only take items that serve a functional purpose. This is because we are first and foremost a registry, although anyone can set up an online wishlist or purchase directly from the site.
My sister is an interior designer, and she identified five styles and helped me curate products within those interior design concepts:
My own home would fall into the boho category, filled with eclectic interiors. Most pieces have some sort of personal meaning — especially art. I’ve always wanted to have original art in my home and started my collection by buying a piece wherever I travelled. I thought it would take forever, but now I don't have enough wall space!
The Dowry is an online wish list featuring artisanal decor made by American artisans.
How do you select the artisans you partner with?
Years ago, I collected contact information from the American artisans I met during my travels. I reached out to them when I started The Dowry, hoping to feature about 100 at a time. After we launched, I categorized them by trade — metalworkers, woodworkers, glass blowers, textile artists, and ceramists. We use these categories to ensure our collection is balanced over time, whether we are reaching out to new artists or they are reaching out to us. Onboarding is a very thorough process, and we provide our partners with whatever they need — from product photography to bios to landing pages. Right now, we are only able to work with American artisans, but we hope to add a category to our website one day that will allow visitors to search for artisanal decor by country.
How do artisans find you?
I didn't realize how close knit the art community is, which has made it easy for American artisans to find us through word of mouth. Once I picked up one Brooklyn ceramicist, all the ceramists in Brooklyn wanted to partner with us. We also work with a few glass blowing schools, and they all support each other. At first, we had to sell ourselves to the artisans, but now, 75% leave other marketplaces after joining The Dowry. Most platforms take fees, but there are none associated with being on our site — it's all free.
How can people support The Dowry?
Think before you buy. How does your consumerism impact others?
Follow us on social media @thedowryregistry.
Encourage people — especially brides and grooms — to set up an online wishlist with us! We can connect to The Knot and Zola.
Purchase a wedding gift from The Dowry, or some artisanal decor for your own home!