For emerging visual artists, the art market can be quite daunting – even online. Countless websites offer artists to sell their artwork, leaving them wondering where to invest their time (and potentially money) to showcase and monetized their creations. Simultaneously, art enthusiasts are often overwhelmed by the flood of offers from innumerable e-commerce sellers, that disclose neither the identities of the artists nor the shares they get paid per purchase.
Creative agencies [COLLECTIVE] and R17 Ventures aim to bridge this gap. Their newly founded joint venture PLAKATIV.STORE is a digital platform empowering artists to sell their poster-print artworks online. Launched in 2022, PLAKATIV.STORE was incorporated as an independent entity in October 2023. The platform manages the logistic aspects of printing, shipping, marketing and communications. Artists receive 20% commission for each sold piece. Currently, the platform sells on average 120 posters monthly, with double-digit growth month-on-month.
[COLLECTIVE] is a Swiss marketing agency which supports national and international companies address their target groups in a positive way, by enriching the lives of their consumers. With a hybrid team of 8-20 employees, [COLLECTIVE] supports clients, such as Lattesso or Swiss Classic Car (SCC), with their branding, advertising and social presence. On the other hand, R17 Ventures is a digital performance marketing agency, with expertise in e-commerce development, and a venture builder that has supported startups such as Secondhandbags, Indyvit or Lessa Fresh. Leveraging their strengths, R17 Ventures, which acquired 25% stake in the new venture, together with [COLLECTIVE] aim to transform PLAKATIV.STORE into a well-positioned brand with a steady community of artists and customers.
“PLAKATIV has already built a community of 4’000 enthusiastic art lovers on Instagram,” highlights Dino Reichmuth, project owner of PLAKATIV from [COLLECTIVE]. Joël Wyss, who is Head of Marketing for the platform, expresses pride in operating a platform that generates new interest and appreciation for physical prints, while benefiting the local art scene. Future plans for PLAKATIV include the expansion of their portfolio and the collaboration with established artists. The team, comprising of Joël Wyss, Dino Reichmuth and Lars Kienle, also works on increasing PLAKATIV’s customer base, reaching beyond Switzerland.
