Community Highlights: Meet Max Rivera of The MAKRS Society

Today we’d like to introduce you to Max Rivera. Them and their team share their story with us below:

The MAKRS Society started in May 2020 as just an online marketplace, but we quickly realized that we needed to turn our business model towards events. We started running our first pop-up markets in November 2020 at CCU Midtown Park in North Hills and now have 5 locations across the state. Our biggest markets are currently in North Hills and Durham Central Park where we have 35+ local vendors, live music, food trucks and more.

Max started his career in supporting local businesses in 2019 as a co-owner of Triangle Pop-Up, where he was able to help them grow their business to over 4 locations in a short matter of time, and the business saw tremendous growth. He is excited for the future of The MAKRS Society business and the endless possibilities on where it can go!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No business is a smooth road. We’ve definitely had our struggles and are still working through struggles along the way. Our first big struggle was realizing we weren’t going to grow quickly if we focus solely on an online marketplace, so we had to switch our focus to events. Another struggle for us has been finding the locations that fit for us. There are so many factors we take into consideration when looking into a location, so finding the perfect location is not always easy.

Despite the struggles, we are pushing forward and continuing to grow. This is where most businesses fail. Pushing past the point of adversity will allow you to grow as a person as well as give your business the momentum it needs until it can run itself.

We’ve been impressed with The MAKRS Society, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Our business specializes in hosting pop-up events for local artists/creatives. We like to call our events mini-festivals because we want people to feel like they are in a different world when they come to our events. Our brand is also pretty different than most other companies in our industry. We tend to focus on different types of social media posts and content that provide people with laughter and empowerment to take with them during the week. We put the social in social media. It’s not just about us. We really like to think about what our viewers want to see and what provides them a sort of relief during their day! Another thing we are super passionate about, which you’ll see through our social media, is mental health. Mental health is something a lot of younger people struggle within America and we want them to know that we are with them.

What matters most to you? Why?
As stated before, mental health is definitely something that matters to me because it’s something that myself and a lot of other people my age (millennials) struggle with. Taking care of ourselves on a day to day basis is something that we need to think more about in our fast-paced environment.

Another thing that’s important to me is shopping local. I started off by supporting local coffee shops and restaurants and now love working with the small businesses that are in our events.

Pricing:

• Booth Fees $60-85/event

Contact Info:

• Email: info@themakrssociety.com
• Website: themakrssociety.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themakrssociety/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMakrsSociety

Image Credits
Kelly Fayrishta Photography