Makeship is taking advantage of its plush rush and turning to vinyl.
Launched in 2018, Makeship is a crowdfunding platform primarily known for giving content creators, such as YouTubers and Webtoon authors, a space to develop limited-run plushies for their fans to purchase. The platform is now expanding into offering vinyl figures.
The system is a bit like the platform Kickstarter, but it features additional design assistance. Makeship works with creators directly to design a product for them. Traditionally, these products have either been plushies or occasionally plush key chains. A crowdfunding campaign then goes up with a minimum goal of orders. If that’s met, the products are sent out to the fans that supported the campaign. It’s a useful tool for indie creators that can’t design and produce their own products for a variety of reasons, such as limited funds or time.
Makeship CEO and Co-founder Rakan Al-Shawaf describes this hurdle well: “When you’re a smaller creator, you don’t get attention from large corporations, and often can’t risk creating a custom product yourself. Makeship gives small- to medium-size creators this power, and we encourage them to be authentic.”
Makeship has announced the addition of vinyl figures to their product options. The initial release will feature nine creators that have seen success within the platform. Bobicraft, Marble Hornets, Zito, JoCat, Drew Durnil, Wizard101, Phoenix SC, Ninja Kiwi, and The Mandela Catalogue will all have figure releases this month. “My relationship with my followers is so important to me. At the end of the day, they support my passion and contribute to my success,” says Bobicraft, a YouTube content creator and Makeship collaborator.
The hope is that the new figure options will continue to tap into the rising number of adult toy collectors, or “kidults” as they’ve become known. Displayable figures have been a common way to show one’s fandom — and Makeship is planting itself firmly in this market with this initial collection of nine figures.
