Hive Local Marketplace Crumbles: Vendors Stunned by Site Closures, Unpaid Bills Mount

It's a tough pill to swallow for many small business owners in the Lehigh Valley. What started as a promising venture to connect local makers and sellers with their community, Hive Local Marketplace, has taken an unfortunate turn. Two of its prominent online platforms, Lehigh Valley Marketplace and Lehigh Valley Apparel, have quietly shut their digital doors, leaving a trail of unpaid vendors and a cloud of uncertainty hanging heavy in the air.

For those who poured their heart and soul into their crafts and products, relying on Hive to help them reach customers, this news is nothing short of devastating. Many, like Jen Kuntz, who runs Vintner's Circle, are reportedly owed thousands of dollars. Imagine putting in all that effort, making sales, only for the money to simply… disappear. It’s a gut-wrenching situation, truly.

The core issue seems to revolve around payments, or rather, the lack thereof. Hive Local Marketplace was designed to be just that – a marketplace. Vendors would sell their items, Hive would take a commission, typically between 20-25%, and then, in theory, disburse the remaining funds weekly. Sounds straightforward, right? Well, for a growing number of vendors, those weekly payments started to dry up around late 2023, grinding to a complete halt by December.

Ashley Marsteller, the creative force behind The Bath Bar, shared her own dismay, revealing she's out over a thousand dollars. "Ghosted" is a word that keeps popping up in conversations with these vendors, a sentiment of feeling completely abandoned after reaching out for answers, only to be met with silence. It's not just about the money, you see; it's also about the trust that was built, and now, seemingly broken.

Eric Smith, the owner of Hive Local Marketplace, acknowledges the gravity of the situation. He attributes the current predicament to significant "cash flow problems" and a "big payment processor change." While he claims to be actively working towards a resolution – even bringing on a consultant and exploring options like a "bridge loan" or selling off parts of the business – the timeline for vendors to receive their much-needed funds remains frustratingly unclear. It's a classic case of good intentions clashing with harsh business realities, leaving a lot of people in a very difficult spot.

This isn't Smith's first foray into local online platforms, nor, unfortunately, his first encounter with payment-related issues. Past ventures like My Local Market and My Local Social also faced similar challenges, which, for some, adds another layer of concern and skepticism to the current promises of resolution. It’s a history that understandably makes vendors wary.

So, what’s next? Many vendors are considering their legal options, feeling that they’ve exhausted all other avenues for recourse. It’s a desperate measure, but when your livelihood is on the line, you do what you have to do. The hope, of course, is that a solution can be found, that these local entrepreneurs can recover their earnings, and that lessons are learned. But for now, the future remains hazy, and the financial strain on these small businesses is undeniably real.