Consortium [con-sort-ee-um]
noun
1. An association of two or more individuals or companies with the objective of participating in a common activity to achieve a common goal.  

Hello and Welcome to The Consortium! I'm Heather - The Consortium co-founder + seller. When I'm not over seeing The Consortium operations, I've got my hands on a sander working on pieces for my vintage furniture company Heather Graye. The other half of The Consortium is my other half, Colin. He makes iOS apps for his company Evolved Software. We live in Port Moody, BC with our lazy dalmatian Loki.

In 2012 I started refurbishing vintage furniture as a passion project. I was having fun starting small, but eventually my passion turned into my obsession. At one point I was storing a 10-piece dining room set in our master bathroom! Chairs were stacked bathtub to ceiling for weeks on end while I worked one piece at a time on our deck. Ladies I know what you're thinking, any man who can put up with your borderline furniture hoarding tendencies - maaarrry him! Don't worry I did three years later...  Eventually we moved to Port Moody, BC and I got a garage to work in! I still can't believe we got our damage deposit back after all those paint and stain splashes.... whoops! 

As my obsession evolved into my business I started to look for the right online marketplace for my pieces. I quickly became frustrated when I couldn't find a platform that was dedicated to selling vintage/handmade wares across the country. When venting to Colin one day he nonchalantly suggested making my own, and right there on the spot said "we'll call it The Consortium". Just like that we were in business! [Actually not just like that, I think I called his idea crazy for a few days, but then the idea sunk in.]

Flash-forward to our launch today - we've got an amazing collection from super talented Canadian makers + finders. I'm so proud to have each one of them be a part of The Consortium.  The whole process leading up to today has be so wonderful. I hope you enjoy our site finding wonderful treasures and inspiration! xx