BROOKLYN, N.Y. (PIX11) -- The highly-anticipated Brooklyn Made store at City Point in Downtown Brooklyn celebrated its grand opening on Friday, showcasing an array of locally-made goods alongside unique international products from countries like Pakistan, El Salvador, and Singapore.
Among the diverse array of vendors is Anjali Bhargava, founder of Anjali's Cup, whose Ayurvedic-inspired turmeric and chai blends are taking center stage.
"It's really the perfect store to bring someone visiting Brooklyn for the first time to really take home the best of Brooklyn," Bhargava said.
She said her sustainably-sourced, "blended with reverence" products aim to make wellness rituals easy while honoring her South Asian heritage and customers' modern lives. Being selected as the store's featured chai brand holds deep personal significance for Bhargava.
"To have this chai product on the store, as the selected chai to represent Brooklyn, having it be something that's authentic that's made by an Indian woman, that means a lot to me," Bhargava said.
The Brooklyn Made store itself is built with reclaimed materials and champions diverse local makers, aligning with the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce's mission of better representing different cultures through the products.
"There are so many creative Brooklyn makers and designers across the borough that are sort of working at their kitchen table. Wouldn't it be great if we can give them a wider platform to promote and sell their products?" said Randy Peers, president of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce.
According to Peers, the importance of Brooklyn Made lies in providing independent Brooklyn-based makers and designers with shelf space.
"These are independent makers and designers who sometimes don't even have shelf space in other locations. We're giving them that opportunity to promote their product on a much wider scale," Peers said.
The new City Point location joins the original Brooklyn Made store at Industry City, with e-commerce expansion also in the works. Wells Fargo played a key role in making the expansion possible, with Krissy Moore, senior vice president of community relations for the Northeast region at Wells Fargo, stating, "Wells Fargo made a $250,000 philanthropic investment into Brooklyn Made."
Meanwhile, Bhargava is ready to sell her products and says the power consumers hold in supporting authentic small businesses like hers lies in their hands.
"I really hope people will step up and make sure they're doing everything they can to support small businesses," Bhargava urged.
The store will be open seven days a week and online. For more information, visit this website.
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