March 9, 2000 | Read Time: 1 minute
Geezer.com is a new Web site that helps older craftspeople sell their wares online — even if they don’t have access to the Internet.
The site — which will feature a wide variety of items such as pottery, wooden toys, hand-tied fishing lures, and baskets — is a project of Green Thumb, a charity based in Arlington, Va., that provides employment opportunities and training to people over the age of 50 who live in rural areas.
Unlike most e-commerce Web sites, Geezer.com will accommodate vendors who do not have access to the Internet. To register with the service, craftspeople send in pictures and descriptions of their handiworks; the charity will post them on the site and later notify vendors, by mail or phone if necessary, of any purchases. A third-party service processes payments, but the craftspeople take care of sending the purchases to the customers.
Craftspeople pay a one-time set-up fee of $9.95; 10 percent of each purchase plus 50 cents goes to Green Thumb to maintain the Web site and cover the cost of the payment service.
So far, 75 craftspeople have signed on with Geezer.com, and a limited version of the site — with at least 15 vendors — is scheduled to go online early this month. The site plans a more official start in May, during Older Americans Month, at which time Green Thumb hopes to offer products from more than 100 craftspeople.
Alice Ann Toole, Green Thumb’s director of public affairs, says that the response to the site’s name has been almost universally positive. “Most people love it. In fact, we’ve had people call us and say, ‘Am I old enough to be a geezer? I really want to be a geezer.’”
To get there: Go to http://www.geezer.com.
