The Easel Mission

1. Small is Beautiful

We believe in hobbit software: small, understandable, lasting.

Easel is built like a well-made hand tool — not a disposable gadget. Minimal dependencies. No frameworks for the sake of trendiness. No JavaScript unless it actually improves the experience.

Everything you don’t need is removed. Everything you do need is built with care.

2. Your Business is Not Our Product

Shopify, Amazon, and their peers build systems that thrive when you don’t. The more you depend on them, the more you pay. The more you grow, the more leverage they have.

At Easel, we make money only when you do. We don't track your customers, upsell you on features, or steer your business into our walled garden.

You can self-host Easel, fork it, change it, or leave with your data intact. We will never try to stop you.

3. Ethics Are Not Optional

We're not neutral. We believe business can be a force for good — software should reflect that. That’s why 20% of our revenue goes to organizations fighting for equity, justice, and sustainability.

And it's why we:

• Host all data in the EU, under GDPR.
• Refuse to work with fossil fuel companies, ICE, or surveillance firms.
• Prioritize accessibility for blind, motor-impaired, and low-income users.
• License Easel under AGPLv3, so no one can take our code proprietary and wall off the commons.

4. Slow is Sustainable.

We are not trying to 10x growth. We are not trying to blitzscale.

We are trying to build something that will still be here in ten years — something simple enough to understand and stable enough to rely on.

That means:

• Fewer features, built better.
• APIs that don’t break.
• No sprints. No hype-cycles. No fads.

When we ship something, it’s because it’s ready.

5. Software is a Craft.

Easel is named for what it supports: not itself, but your work.

We see code as craft— like painting, woodworking, or typography. The best tools get out of the way, stay sharp for decades, and never insist they’re the star of the show.