Archives of the Art Dog Blog from MacPherson's

Travis Smith

Leonard Green & Partners, owner of the Sports Authority and Jo-Ann Stores, has announced sweeping changes in the senior leadership at both chains. At the Sports Authority, CEO David Campisi has been replaced by Darrell Webb, formerly the head of Jo-Ann Stores.  At  the craft and fabric chain, Travis Smith, the company’s interim CEO, will formally take over the helm.

Alan Braun

Elmer’s has reorganized its sales structure. Best wishes to Alan Braun who has left the company where he served as a sales manager responsible for key accounts in the art materials industry and mass markets. Joe Mannix, who has been with Elmer’s for over 6 years and has extensive market and category knowledge, will be taking over Alan’s responsibilities.

Are you a member of NAMTA, our one and only International Art Materials Trade Association? If so there are some big things brewing that you’ll be hearing about over the next few months. If you aren’t a member, perhaps it’s time to take another look because NAMTA is a lot more that just an annual convention. In these times it can provide you the retailer with the tools and connections to not only survive, but to thrive.

You’ll recall that, for the first time in several years, NAMTA conducted a major membership satisfaction survey in March and shared the results in April at the Phoenix Trade Show and Conference. In response the Board and staff have been working hard to update and/or re-invent many pieces of the association’s operation.

Here’s a snapshot of what’s been happening and what’s on the horizon.

•    In September you’re going to start receiving NAMTA’s new e-Newsletter.  It will be sent to you 26x annually and replaces the printed News & Views/NAMTA Notes.  Over the past couple of months a lot of time and energy has gone into a new design and content development.

•    NAMTA’s website is undergoing a complete redesign and will be launched soon.  It’ll be more organized and user-friendly.

•    Information you can use.  Both the e-Newsletter and website are going to feature unique information focused on the art materials business.  Sales ideas, training, timely national and international info collected from a variety of sources, commentary from art materials experts and so much more.

•    Products and services.  An array of training programs, tips and ideas are being produced.  Successful sales and marketing programs are being compiled for you.  NAMTA is developing new relationships with leading retail groups.  The list goes on.

•    Updating the 2009 Artists & Art Materials Survey.  The plan is to conduct this survey late this year and to announce the results at the 2012 Orlando Trade Show and Conference.

Additionally, the Board has developed and finalized a strategic plan for the association and all of the above activities fit within the parameters of this plan and are in response to your membership survey feedback.

All of this – and more – has been evolving over the past 120 days.  A lot of people have been “paddling hard” and you’re going to start seeing the results start to unfold in September and beyond.

Looking for material to use on your website or store blog?

Inspiring words from Steve Jobs, arguably the biggest cultural influence of our times.

“No one wants to die, even people who want to go to Heaven don’t want to die to get there.

And yet, death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be. Because death is very likely the single best invention of life. It’s life’s change agent; it clears out the old to make way for the new.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice, heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

None of us should ever have to face death to accept the inflexible and, too-often, novel sense of scarcity that it introduces. In fact, it’d be great if we could each skip needing outside permission to be awesome by not waiting until the universe starts tapping its watch.”

– Steve Jobs, 2005

Long time industry personality and Seattle based rep  Ben Edwards is asking for your compassion and help. His two beautiful granddaughters suffered a horrible accident recently in which they were severely burned.  Ben is asking the art materials community to aid in raising funds for their medical expenses. Ben worked in the past for Seattle Art and Crescent and now is with Daniel Smith.

Fundraiser for the Strode Sisters

Please Help Brooklyn and Addison

Brooklyn was at Harborview for 24 hours while Addison was a Harborview patient for 48 days and endured 3 skin graft surgeries to her face and hands.

Grandpa Ben is skydiving with one of the amazing Harborview Burn ICU nurses (Jenny a skilled skydiver)  to raise funds for his grand-daughters medical expenses

When: September 10 @ 12:30pm

Goal: $10,000

He will tandem jump from 13, 000 feet & free fall for 60 seconds!

Please join us to view Grandpa Ben take the BIG LEAP!

Skydive Kapowson-141 W. Airview Way, Shelton, WA 98584

Please make checks payable to Addison Strode or Send donations to the Addison Strode Medical Fund-PO Box 5847 Kent, WA 98064

Billionaire entrepreneur Charles Wyly, former chairman of arts and crafts retail chain Michaels Stores Inc., died Sunday August 7th after suffering injuries in a car crash in Colorado. He was 77. Wyly and his brother, Sam, bought a controlling interest in Michaels in 1982; Affiliates of two private investment firms, Bain Capital Partners LLC and The Blackstone Group LP, bought the majority of Michaels’ common stock in 2006 for about $6 billion. Wyly was involved in numerous philanthropic efforts in Dallas. Outside business and philanthropic circles, the Wyly brothers are known for their contributions to Republican political candidates and causes. Our condolences go out to the Wyly family.

Anne Marie Moesch, Senior Product Manager at ColArt Americas for the past 7 years, has left the company to take a position in product management at the Fisher-Price division of Mattel in its New York City office. All the best, Anne Marie! (Thanks Facebook for up to the minute news!)

David Goldstein of The Jerry’s Artarama Company reports the chain’s plans to open a new store in Lawrenceville NJ before the end of 2011, close to the Joe Teti’s venerable Triangle Art.

Crescent has hired Jim Samoska, formerly with Elmer’s to head its national sales effort for the art materials division.

In September Blick will be opening a new large store in Cambridge, MA at  619 Massachusetts Ave.

Finally, an artist products manufacturer who understands both the artist and retailer!

Chartpak has developed a line of Grumbacher collegiate acrylics that maximizes the color gamut with the fewest number of SKUs -48 colors.  Retailers will have increased turns as the line has virtually all “A” and “B” selling items.  You will not find different values of the same or similar hue in our line.  What you will find are 48 highly pigmented colors.  Chartpak reformulated its existing 24 colors and added 24 new colors with a new single base, so that the flow and drying are more consistent.

Most importantly, all 48 colors have an ASTM lightfast rating of “1” or excellent.  Even professionals can use Academy Acrylics with confidence knowing of the high level of permanence built into our product.  We engineered the line to this lightfast level because you never know when an artist will paint their masterpiece.  How many artists do you know that wish they had used better materials when they were young?  Academy Acrylic users will not be one of them in the future.

Chartpak developed brilliant new process colors which make rich secondary and tertiary colors, and also added two metallic colors that really shimmer.

Grumbacher Academy Acrylics are available in 90ml traditional metal tubes and in exciting contemporary designed 75ml plastic tubes.  Fifteen colors are offered in 200ml plastic tubes.  Best of all are the prices.  75ml $4.75, 90ml $5.60 and 200ml $9.95. And finally,  Grumbacher paints are all proudly manufactured and tubed in the United States.

All Academy Acrylic assortments drop-shipped at 50/35%, with free freight and free rack through 9/24/11 for BTS.

In Support of the New Introductory Grounds Set

Merchandising the New Introductory Grounds Set

Did you know that many GOLDEN Gels & Pastes make great grounds for drawing media as well as wet media? Colored pencil, pastel, charcoal, these are just some of the common drawing materials that work great on top of many GOLDEN textures. To help artists discover a broad range of options, GOLDEN has put together this Introductory Set of products that offer exciting surfaces when used as grounds for drawing or painting.

This set fits perfectly in both the GOLDEN Acrylic aisle and in the Drawing aisle. Cross-merchandising this set will grow not only day-to-day interest in the largest range of Gel & Pastes offered to artists, it should intrigue dry media artists as well, stimulating new customer trial.

Another option is to consider featuring the Introductory Grounds Set in an off-shelf display to generate customer excitement and increase trial. Suggested displays may include:

• A dozen or more GD00P946-0 Grounds Sets stacked invitingly on a table.

• A representative display of standard sized product, based on the products included in the set.

• Signage provided by GOLDEN that introduces the set (includes a place for you to write in your special introductory price).

• Surfaces prepared with the products sold in the set along with an assortment of drawing materials for artists to experiment with on the sample boards.

In addition, by giving customers the opportunity to access QR codes on point-of-purchase materials for each product in the set, they have more detailed information right at their fingertips. Finding the exact product that will best meet their needs will now be easier than ever!

Point-of-purchase merchandising pieces are available in support of this set at no cost. Be sure to add these items to your next order!

• GDMO15190 – Grounds Set BTS POP (2) – Acrylic & Drawing Aisle

• GDMO15170 –  Collection of 6 Ground Set POP Danglers

Customers visiting the GOLDEN Web site who are interested in learning more about the set can go to Golden’s Web Site and click on the Grounds Set rotating banner, which will take them to more detailed information and product videos on the Grounds Set landing page: Ground Set Page.

Please contact your MacPherson’s sales rep right away for this exciting order writing opportunity!

Don’t forget to order the STABILO Point 88 Sneaker Contest promo kit – available now in all MacPherson’s warehouses under item number  SWSHOEPROMO.  It contains 2 promo posters and 2 packs of sneaker cards – all you retailers need to do is put up the posters and put the cards out, and make sure to stock STABILO Point 88 pens.  That’s it, it’s that easy!  The contest has an entry deadline of Sept. 30th, 2011 so retailers will want to get the promo kit and put up the posters and cards ASAP to take advantage of the promo for as long as possible.

For more information on the promo please visit the link MacPherson’s Stabilo Contest

In conjunction with the promo, we are also including FREE carded samples of STABILO Point 88 pens and BOSS Highlighters in all the kits we build (while supplies last), to help get STABILO out there in the hands of consumers to try.  We know once people try STABILO products, they’ve GOT to have more!

In 2008 the Sam & Adele Golden Foundation began its commitment to providing living and workspace opportunities for artists, with the development of an artist in residence space in a hundred year old barn located on Bell Road, just a 5 minute walk from the GOLDEN facility. On August 20, the Foundation will proudly be opening its doors to the public for a preview of this new artist residency space. Visitors will have a chance to tour the building while enjoying live music from the band, “Caravan of Thieves.”

SAVE THE DATES – August 19 & 20 – for events at Golden Artist Colors

August 19, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm : VELOCITY : Larry Poons

VELOCITY is an exhibition of selected works by New York painter Larry Poons, opening at the Sam & Adele Golden Gallery (the SAGG) at Golden Artist Colors, Inc., New Berlin, NY, from August 19, 2011 through November 19, 2011. There is an opening reception for the artist from 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm on Friday, August 19. Poons has exhibited his paintings around the world in museums and commercial galleries for more than five decades.  More details at www.thesagg.org.

August 20, 1:00 am – 4:00 pm : GOLDEN Residency Preview

New Store Finder Functionality is Live!

Retailers, don’t miss out on the opportunity to differentiate your store from the competition – fill out your questionnaire today!  If you have not visited the site recently or if you did not receive a letter detailing your username and password, contact GOLDEN Customer Service to talk about Marketplace access.  You can access the new Store Finder by going to: Golden Store Finder.

Creating Unique Techniques with OPEN Acrylics

OPEN Acrylics has become popular with the Plein Air community, but as we continue to support this unique line of acrylics, we’d like to remind customers about some of the other unique techniques and advantages that are possible with these paints. In the two new videos listed below, GOLDEN Working Artists Program Director, Patti Brady provides an introduction to the properties of OPEN Acrylics and in the second video, walks artists through using OPEN for subtractive techniques.  Go to the GOLDEN Video Library to view: Golden Video Library. They are also available on Golden Youtube Channel.

• “Introduction to OPEN Acrylics”

• “Subtractive Technique Using OPEN”

Chartpak‘s discounts on brushes are the deepest in the industry and MacPherson’s is offering an incredible drop ship deal of 70/25%, free rack and free freight through 9/24/11 for BTS.

The Grumbacher company started its tradition of excellence as a manufacturer of quality brushes. The company’s founder, Max Grumbacher, started his brush business at his kitchen table in New York City in 1903. He sold the brushes door to door. His brushes were renowned for their high quality and his business quickly grew.  He hired additional brush makers, trained them and incorporated his business in 1905.  The dedication to selling quality brushes is still the guiding principal for the Grumbacher brush brands.  Venerable brands like Gainsborough, Degas, Goldenedge and Bristlette have been staples of artists for decades.

Today, there are close to 1,200 artists that use Grumbacher brushes in workshops nationwide.  Chartpak also provides many stores with artists for demonstrations.  Chartpak is as committed to creating primary demand to sell its products out of the retail store as selling them into your store.

Our five professional lines include:

• Goldenedge – Professional watercolor brush with its gold plated ferrules.
• Goldenedge – Professional oil and acrylic brush, also with the gold plated ferrules and 4 different diameters of the highest quality synthetic filaments available.
• Gainsborough –The famous 1271 series.  For decades the finest hog bristle brush available.
• Degas – Redeveloped 2 years ago. It is made from 7 different filaments and it’s the most versatile oil and acrylic brush available today.
• Bristlette – The professional medium stiffness nylon oil and acrylic brush is the most popular series that Grumbacher offers.

Our collegiate lines include:  Academy Oil and Acrylic, Academy Hog Bristle, Academy Watercolor and Academy Natural Watercolor.

We have attractive new displays with updated attractive and informative graphics.  The racks are constructed so that the brushes always fall forward making a clean and orderly product presentation.