Online Souvenir Store Combines Love of Berkshires and Dogs / iBerkshires.com

This on-line store celebrates dogs and the Berkshires utilizing a classic aesthetic. The model sells  sustainable clothes and prints together with t-shirts, hats, canine bandanas, and stickers.

The couple moved to the Berkshires in 2015. Amber hails from Sunderland and Ruban is from Burbank, Calif.

Following a pal’s go to to the Berkshires in November, the couple realized that there usually are not many memento shops and thus “Barkshires” was born.

“We’ve had company come and wish to seize some issues,” Reuben stated. “…in a world the place a lot divides folks, it appears like pets and significantly dogs are one thing that everybody can rally round and everybody has actually rallied round it from simply all walks of life.”

The designs mix facets of the Berkshires, from snowboarding to breweries, and pair them with totally different breeds. They hope to develop to incorporate objects that characteristic cats for native cat lovers.

Ruben is a graphic designer, illustrator, and animator and due to his artwork the duo is plugged into the world’s artist neighborhood.

After sharing their concept with a few of their artist mates ranging in specialties from pictures to net design the items got here falling collectively. The duo have been working with native printers in Dalton and Pittsfield.

A significant a part of their mission is to help hardworking people concerned in shelters and rescues.

While on the hunt for a canine of their very own they found their rescue Millie at Pupstarz Rescue in New York City.

They described the lady ran the nonprofit as accountable and stated they have been very impressed with their adoption course of.

Although being a completely sustainable model is troublesome, they’re ordering their T-shirt merchandise from 5 totally different producers which have moral sourcing and have both full or partially sustainable facets to the material, Amber stated.

“We respect when one thing is finished effectively … So I believe that is one of many causes our retailer is taking a short time, is we actually wish to be certain that each expertise is believed by and celebrates good design in Berkshire life,” Amber stated.

They are additionally ensuring that each one their packaging, shippers, and packing containers are recyclable and are available from corporations that concentrate on sustainable packaging.

“All that does undoubtedly add to the cost of our merchandise however we felt like that was effectively value it and that folk, I believe, have gotten extra conscious of what we are able to do as our half to purchase responsibly and so we needed to simply make that a part of our model,” Amber stated.

Prior to opening their on-line store, they’ve been merchandising at native occasions and farmers markets to gauge neighborhood curiosity.

While merchandising they’ve obtained a really heat welcome” from neighborhood members, Amber stated.

“People appear to reply actually rapidly to the model and one factor we love is that we had superior conversations as a result of everyone drawn to our tent loves dogs,”

“… so it is only a enjoyable method to actually plug into the animal loving neighborhood and the Berkshires.”

An facet of their merchandise that they’re trying ahead to is the corporate’s canine bandanas that characteristic “a extremely easy and stylish stitched pleat,” which isn’t one thing they’ve seen achieved in canine bandanas earlier than, Ruben stated.

“It simply offers it a bit of little bit of a tailor-made fashion. It’s bought, like three little pleats which can be simply stitched in and a pleasant little spherical form that, I really feel like, it is simply simpler to placed on and off dogs with out having to re-tie which I hate retieing. I’m tremendous enthusiastic about our canine bandana merchandise,” Ruben stated.

To make the model extra inclusive and attempt to make all their clients completely happy, they’ve invested in together with bigger graphics for a few of the massive and tall sizes which a number of corporations don’t do due to the added cost, Ruben stated.

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