Archives of the Art Dog Blog from MacPherson's

With great sadness we report the tragic passing of one of our industry’s best. Debbie Hart, owner of the Artworks Art & Frame in Excelsior, MN was killed in a car crash on Tuesday April 9th. We send our most sincere condolences and prayers to her family. For a news account visit the Lake Minnetonka Patch’s web site or see here tribute page on Facebook. Here is a tribute to Debbie in the latest issue of the Art Material Retailer Magazine as she celebrated 40 years in business. Art Materials Retailer

Artist & Craftsman Supply, headquartered in Portland, Maine, announced its 19th store location in the Harlem area of New York city. The 8,000 square foot store will be opening early July 2013 and according to CEO Larry Adlerstein, “the new store adjoins Columbia University in an area where there are no other art suppliers within miles. There are literally millions of people here who are art supply deprived. I hope we can ease their pain.”

Wayne Brooke the former buyer and operations manager at Central Florida Office Plus in Gainesville, FL died Thursday April 5 from complications of cancer, cancer treatment, and pneumonia. He was  57 years old.

Howard Krinsky of Binder’s will become the newest member of NAMTA‘s Executive Committee. Congratulations, Howard!

Bringing Urban Art to School:  Montana Artist Collective member REYES teamed up with Jake Hodgson, principal at Bayshore Elementary School in Daly City, CA on an effort to brighten up and beautify the school campus with a vibrant mural.  The otherwise nondescript building was transformed using Montana BLACK, giving it a cheerful face lift.  Check out the time lapse video to see the mural in process!

In celebration of its 75th Anniversary, Prismacolor will offer a limited edition set of the 50 most popular Premier colored pencil colors. Each pencil will feature a “75 Years” imprint and the set will also include an instructional DVD, two bonus blender markers, and various other informational brochures with tips and techniques. Perfect for the Prismacolor enthusiast and a wonderful gift idea, this set will be available in October.  Please contact your MacPherson’s sales representative for more information.

Prismacolor expert, Diana Garrett demonstrates an interesting technique using Prismacolor Soft Core Colored Pencils and Plexiglass:

Here is a tribute to Beth Bergman from The Grand Avenue web site, in celebration of her induction into the Art Materials Hall of fame at the NAMTA Convention next week in Minneapolis:

Beth Bergman will be recognized for her leadership in business, arts advocacy, and the art materials industry when the International Art Materials Association inducts her into its Hall of Fame. The honor takes place at the association’s annual conference and trade show, Art Materials World, which is held this year in Minneapolis, May 1–3.

Bergman owns and operates Wet Paint artists’ supplies on St. Paul’s Grand Avenue. She has grown the business over 29 years to become one of the most known and respected independent art supply retailers in North America. An artist herself, Bergman was a founding member of the WARM Gallery. She actively supports other artists and arts organizations, including the Minnesota Museum of American Art, where she has served on the board.

She is also a long-time champion of independent businesses through her work in the Grand Avenue Business Association and MetroIBA, the Twin Cities’ Independent Business Alliance.

“It’s easy for all of us to look at small businesses and think of them as ‘just local,’” Bergman says. “In reality, small business owners sometimes have the most direct relationships with a global network of suppliers and customers, which is one reason they can do so much to enrich their neighborhoods and communities.”

Wet Paint stocks 35,000 creative products and is a regular stop for manufacturers from around the world, who come to discuss new products and trends in art making with Bergman and her staff. The store has become a hub for the Twin Cities arts community, but also for visiting artists and, through online sales, for artists across the country and abroad.

“This Hall of Fame induction is Beth’s peers in the industry saying, ‘This woman has done an outstanding job,’” says Reggie Hall, executive director of the North Carolina-based International Art Materials Association. The organization is known as “NAMTA“, the initials taken from its earlier identity as a national trade group. “Beth is highly regarded across the industry,” Hall says. “She’s very knowledgeable and more than happy to share that knowledge with anyone.”

Bergman served on the NAMTA board of directors from 2006 through 2012. She’s led the creation of a showcase at the annual conference for new products and concepts to support diverse artists.

“Wet Paint is an internationally recognized art supply store, thanks in large part to education and connections gained through NAMTA,” Bergman says. “Those things that you gain from, you give back to.” Here is the link to the article: Grand Avenue Blog

At this year’s NAMTA show, Howard Kaufman will be presented with the association’s Lifetime Achievement Award.  He is the founder and President of Princeton Brush Company.  With over forty years of industry experience, Howard’s career began as a sales rep for Chartpak in NYC, LI and Northern NJ.  A native New Yorker, he is still referred to as Howie Chartpak by old time customers.  After working his way up the corporate ladder for the first twenty years, Howard left his job as General Manager of Grumbacher to begin Princeton Brush in the basement of his home in 1992.

Though nobody needed or wanted another brush line, Princeton was very competitive from the outset as a low overhead business.  As the expression “inventory rules” Princeton has always been able to ship quickly with the highest fill rates in the industry.  So as the business grew, so did the inventory which soon eclipsed the basement, living and dining rooms.

A veteran who served in the Air Force in Southeast Asia, Howard is married to his wife Debbie (who regained her house space last year when Howard moved the company into a 17,500 sq foot warehouse) and they have two daughters, Lauren and Ashley.

MacPherson’s will be closing its Elgin Facility in June 2014 following the expiration of our lease. By our conversion to two DCs, in Reno and Atlanta, we can achieve substantial facilities savings while simplifying and reducing our large inventory investment. We have carefully planned this change so that our Midwest and North Eastern customers will not be disadvantaged.

We have made this decision with strong reservations given the effective and experienced team we have in Elgin.

Our Elgin employees will be encouraged to relocate to a larger facility in Atlanta that we expect to occupy next Spring.

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to write or call,

franks@macphersonart.com  (510) 761-5690

Frank Stapleton

Bob Buchsbaum, CEO of Blick

Blick Art Materials has acquired Utrecht Art Supplies, the 45-store art supply retailer from Topspin Partners LBO. Bob Buchsbaum, Chief Executive Officer of Blick, said of the transaction: “The acquisition of Utrecht gives us a tremendous, well-established brand and greater geographic reach for our brick and mortar channel. We are very excited to welcome Utrecht employees and customers to the Blick team.”  Topspin Partners LBO Managing Director Steve Lebowitz was equally pleased with the transaction, stating, “We are glad to have achieved a successful exit for our investors and are proud of the business that Utrecht’s employees have helped to build.  We are confident that Utrecht will be in good hands as part of the Blick family.”

Check out this fun promo video from Forstall’s in Birmingham:

Here’s an idea for increasing your sales of Mat Board and Logan Mat Cutters. It’s an online calculator that consumers can use to create custom mats for their photos or art work:

Click here for the link Logan Calculator

Looking for something to increase store traffic and sales this spring? Take advantage of Strathmore 2013 Online Workshop Series by promoting the start of Workshop 2 in your store, on your website, on Facebook… and drive sales as students purchase from the class supply list.

Strathmore Online Workshop 2 — Sketching and Drawing with Toned Paper — starts May 1, 2013.

Here are three ideas for taking advantage of the program:

1. Create Workshop Supply End Cap – Download this poster/handout pdf and create an end cap featuring workshop supply list. Use the poster on the end cap to promote the workshops as well as in the window and at check out.  Also, you can order 2013 Online Workshop Tear Off pads easily at Workshop Order.

2.  Follow Strathmore Artist Papers on Facebook – Strathmore’s Facebook Page – and share our posts with your fans. This is a really easy thing to do.  We share on-going information and reminders about the Workshops on Facebook.  Ask your fans to stock up on class supplies at your store!

3.  Create your own workshop from content delivered in our Workshops! Each workshop provides you with a supply list, educational video and supporting handout. Makes hosting your own event easier!

Interested in learning more? Contact your MacPherson’s sales representative for ideas of how you can drive more traffic and sales with Strathmore 2013 Online Workshop Series. Visit Strathmore Artist Papers at Strathmore Artist.com for more information about the 2013 Workshop Series.