What's it all About?
Craft+Work began as a one-off gathering of Shopify Partners — the people building, leading, and shaping the ecosystem from the inside. What started as a small experiment quickly became something worth continuing.
Since our first event in London in June 2023, we've hosted a further five editions in London, New York and Toronto. Each event brought together around fifty curious, like-minded people to share experiences, spark ideas, and talk honestly about what it takes to run and grow a business today.
Over time, Craft+Work has attracted not just Shopify Partners but also founders, makers, and leaders from creative and digital businesses who share the same curiosity and appetite for open, honest conversation. Alongside our annual events in 2026, we're launching a new podcast and a regular newsletter to keep those conversations, and connections, going between events.
How it Began
Like most good ideas, Craft+Work began with a conversation. Two friends, Keir Whitaker and Craig Cooper, talking about how the online business world had become a little too loud. Everywhere you looked, someone was selling the “right” way to succeed. The truth, of course, is that there isn't one.
Craft+Work was born as a reaction to that noise — a belief that what works today probably won't work tomorrow, and that the best way to learn is through honest, open conversations with people actually doing the work.
So we started small. Fifty people in a room, good food, open discussion, and a shared sense that something was missing from the usual conference circuit. No stages or slide decks. No sponsors shouting from the sidelines. Just people talking honestly about how they build, grow, and keep going.
How it's Going
Since then, Craft+Work has grown into more than a series of gatherings. The conversations that started in those rooms now continue through our upcoming podcast, newsletter, and Notebook, still driven by the same curiosity and community spirit that kicked it all off.
We'll always keep hosting events — they're the heart of Craft+Work but we're just as excited to explore new ways to connect, learn, and keep the dialogue going between them.