Cambridge, MA – CustomMade, the online marketplace for one-of-a-kind goods, today announced the introduction of a new payments platform designed to make the process of buying custom even easier. Through CustomMade’s new partnership with WePay, payments are now facilitated directly within the CustomMade website, providing a more seamless user experience along with increased transparency and security.

CustomMade operates as a two-sided marketplace with Makers - independent artisans and craftspeople - on one end, and customers on the other end. While in the past, customers arranged payment directly with Makers, the new platform allows both parties to transact directly through the CustomMade site so that customers know exactly where their money is going, and Makers know exactly when they will receive their payment.

“The ability to imagine and participate in the creation of one-of-a-kind, custom items, ranging from furniture to jewelry, is incredibly important to our customers, and we are continually looking for ways to make the experience of buying custom more delightful,” said CustomMade CEO Mike Salguero. “Our new payments platform is streamlining the process for our customers to pay for projects they are creating on the site, which we see as a real benefit. And on top of that, with CustomMade now handling invoicing, Makers now have more time to spend doing what they do best – producing unique one-of-a-kind goods that offer deeper meaning than those found at traditional retailers.”

Before making the decision to bring payments in-house, CustomMade reviewed several payments providers. The company selected WePay because of its reputation, as well as the company’s high levels of customer support and the ability to accept several forms of payment, including credit cards and bank account (ACH) transactions.

“We are thrilled to work with CustomMade to help them offer a simple and secure way for their Makers to receive payments online, while also offering a seamless purchasing experience to their customers,” said Bill Clerico, CEO of WePay. “We believe our years of experience servicing small businesses will be incredibly useful to CustomMade as they continue to grow.”

In addition to being backed by a dedicated world-class support team, the new payments platform offers great technology with an API designed to leverage WePay’s years of experience directly working with small merchants. WePay’s API also helps partners, like CustomMade, avoid the operational downsides of risk, compliance and support.

“We believe CustomMade’s new payment platform is a good example of finding a novel solution to a difficult payments problem. Our payments flow is particularly challenging, as we process large transactions in multiple steps over a multi-week period, and need a solution that appeals to both our Makers and our customers. Using WePay, we can now collect payments from customers in a way that’s completely secure, and then pay out our Makers in a timely and convenient manner,” noted CustomMade COO Matt Zisow. “The launch of payments is helping us further position buying custom as a viable alternative to traditional retail, and we’re excited to continue to innovate our offerings.”

About CustomMade

CustomMade is an online marketplace connecting Buyers who want one-of-a-kind creations with professional and passionate Makers of those goods. Born in 1996 with the vision to help people find the unique gifts, objects and goods they cannot find through traditional retail channels, CustomMade has grown from a community of 350 carpenters to more than 12,000 Makers of all trades since its acquisition in 2009. For more information, visit www.custommade.com.