What’s Going On With Kolinsky Brushes? By Tom Dix, President Global Art Materials By now, most retailers have heard or become aware that importers and manufacturers are having difficulty importing kolinsky brushes into the U.S. Shipments have been halted and in some cases seized by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This began at least six months ago and is now causing a serious disruption in the supply of brushes that use pure kolinsky hair. NAMTA members that import these brushes have been working together to try and find a solution, but so far we have been unable to find a permanent fix. Trade in kolinsky hair is managed by…

The Atlanta Business Chronicle reports Binders Art Supplies & Frames has signed a lease for a new store at the more than $200 million redevelopment of the former Sears building on Ponce de Leon Avenue into a hip hub of apartments, office space, restaurants and shops in Atlanta. “Ponce City Market promises to become one of the cultural epicenters of Atlanta, and we are thrilled to be a part of it,” said Howard Krinsky, president-owner of Binders. “Each of our stores has its own personality and contributes to the surrounding neighborhood in various ways. Read the whole article here: Binders in the News Welcome to the world Emma Jane Shoham, born 6:02 pm June 27th…

GOLDEN and Princeton Catalyst Join Forces in BTS Promotion Now’s the time to plan your BTS “Go Big and Save” buying opportunity from Princeton and GOLDEN! During this promotion, when you buy 32 oz. GOLDEN Heavy Body or Gels, Pastes and Gesso, you will automatically receive a Princeton Catalyst tool. A great value to offer your customers! Check out the MacPherson’s BTS Buyer’s Guide (page 5) for additional details! New High Flow Acrylics from GOLDEN Are Shipping Now! New High Flow Acrylics from GOLDEN began shipping June 18! This super low viscosity line of colors is so flexible it works for all kinds of artists, from illustrators to mixed media, and fine artists…

Here’s the story: Get creative and drive incremental sales at BTS with an off-shelf placement of PRISMACOLOR products and your retail location could win $1,000, a Prismacolor demo by one of Prismacolor’s famed artists, and a wine & cheese reception for your store employees and VIP customers! DETAILS; Product must be displayed off-shelf in the form of an end-cap, store front display, drive aisle, or stack-out during the BTS period. Display must include Prismacolor Brush Tip Markers Photographs must be submitted to your MacPherson’s Sales Representative no later than September 1st, 2013 • PRIZES 1st Place – $1,000, an in-store Prismacolor demonstration, a wine & cheese reception for your store and VIP customers (up to 25ppl). Feature on Prismacolor’s social media vehicles!…

MEMORIAL FOR RICK ROUSSEAU This just received from Rick Comerford: It is with great sadness that we share this news with you. On Friday May 31, 2013 Richard Rousseau died of a sudden heart attack. Rick was a loving husband, son, brother, and a most trusted friend. He was a force of creative energy in the Art Materials industry as a retail buyer, manager and ultimately the owner and founder of the design and development firm Artist Hardware in Skokie IL. The void left in Rick’s passing will be felt in the hearts of everyone that has ever had the pleasure of knowing him. Rick is survived by his mother, Kathleen, father…

Help! We at MacPherson’s have begun the search for a replacement for Steve Iantosca in our New England sales territory. This is a great opportunity for the right person who possesses both sales and art materials industry experience. We offer full benefits including the ability to join the ESOP program and be an employee-owner of MacPherson’s. Interested candidates should contact Neil McIntyre (neilm@macphersonart.com) or our Human Resources department in Emeryville (natashan@macphersonart.com). Congratulations to the NAMTA Art Materials World 2013 award winners! • Best Small Booth – BLUM formerly Milan USA (Blüm’s website) (Canson took over Milan’s distribution in the United States) • Best Medium Booth – Masterpiece Artist Canvas • Best…

GOLDEN participation at NAMTA was a great success! For those of you who were able to attend the show in Minneapolis, GOLDEN appreciates you stopping by their booth. The folks at GOLDEN enjoyed catching up with each of you and walking you through the various new product launches and marketing initiatives they’ll be focusing on for the remainder of the year. If you weren’t able to attend the show, these photos give you a glimpse of GOLDEN’s unique booth design this year. It focused on applications using the new High Flow Acrylics, which you can learn more about by going to Golden Highflow Acrylics Website. If you have questions, please contact your GOLDEN or MacPherson’s sales representative. GOLDEN will also be…

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…

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: httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXAcrEqpwC8

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…

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…

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  

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:…

The Alliance for Main Street Fairness (AMSF) who represents small brick and mortar business is celebrating a recent US Senate vote on the Marketplace Fairness Act. A bipartisan group of 75 Senators came together to take an important step towards closing the online sales tax loophole. “This vote marks an enormous victory for America’s small businesses, which have been forced to compete on an unlevel playing field for far too long.” according to AMSF. Former Michaels CEO Michael Rouleau has been named interim CEO for Tuesday Morning, the 830-store chain that sells closeout home and gift merchandise. Rouleau will manage the company’s day-to-day operations through the hiring of a new CEO and will…

Michaels Stores has named Chuck Rubin as CEO and a member of the Board of Directors. He currently is President/CEO of Ulta Beauty, a publicly-held chain of 550 cosmetic stores. He will assume his new roles after a brief period of transition. Chuck Sonsteby, who acted as co-CEO, will continue as the Company’s Chief Administrative Officer and CFO. Previous employers of Chuck Rubin include Office Depot, Sportmart, and Federated Department Stores.  “Michaels is an iconic brand and a category leader in the large and fragmented arts and crafts industry, with considerable potential moving forward,” said Mr. Rubin. “With its diverse product offering of industry defining brands and unique customer engagement strategy, Michaels has built…

Many of the industry’s most experienced and respected art material retailers have shared a little of their wisdom with NAMTA and you are the beneficiary. NAMTA asked these longtime retailers to tell us what three pieces of advice they’d give any art material retailer . . . especially those who weren’t as experienced. The result is — 101 Tips (that don’t include pricing) for Art Material Retailers – and it will immerse you in page after page of advice from a group of experts who, collectively, have more than 500 years of experience selling art materials. This document can be of great value to independent reps and manufacturers, too, because many “tips” suggest…

Industry icon and all around bon vivant Jerry Haines passed away peacefully on Christmas day at his home in Southern California. Jerry was one of the pioneers of the contemporary USA Art materials scene, having worked with Robert Sachs, Shiva and more recently as owner of the Artist Color Wheel Company, now lovingly cared for by his son Ken. We”ll miss you Jerry, you were one of a kind! This just in from JM Ghent, General Manager of Curry’s in Canada:  “We have recently acquired the renowned art supplier Woolfitt’s Art Supplies in Toronto, Ontario”.  Former owner Ben Woolfitt will be moving on to create art and pursue other passions in…

Four ace reporters from our west coast merchandising and sales team, Joanne Quinn Owens, Sandy Goodstein, Catherine Thoele and Gary Santos collaborated to file this brief  “curated” view of last week’s CHA mega show in Anaheim: ArtBin’s newish Marker case and inserts are super hot items. They’re just what the professor ordered for big collections of Copic, Prisma, AD and Promarkers and we have them in stock, order now! Princeton showcased Catalyst Contours, a hard silicone value priced decorative scrapers and blades. Besides being great for clay, these are perfect for cake decorating, and culinary arts. Check out this video: httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bdxXajE9Y8 They look ideal for stores who serve schools with culinary depts., as well…

Steve Chamberlain has been named ColArt Americas new Vice President Sales. Previously Steve headed ColArt’s commercial sales effort in Great Britain. Over the next 6 months Steve will transition from his old job to his new home in the USA. FLAX was voted Most Awesome Artistic Art Supplies for kids. With a total vote count of over 200,000, Red Tricycle’s Awesome Awards honor kid friendly brands, products and services as recognized by the Red Tricycle Community. Alvin & Company has hired Mike Mayerck to be its Director of Sales. Before joining a sewings notions supplier, Mike had worked for the Grimstad Comerford manufacturer’s rep group. In related news, Dorrie Boyd has been promoted to Alvin’s Marketing Manager. She joined…

Super Storm Sandy Devastates the East Coast We have received many reports of the impact Super Storm Sandy had on our customers in the New York and New Jersey areas. There are no art supply store personnel casualties that we are aware of, but here is a brief recap of what we’ve heard so far. In New York City, Lee’s Art Shop, DaVinci Art Supply, Fashion Books, and Art Student’s League were closed for the week of November 22nd. AI Friedman in Port Chester, NY suffered connectivity problems after power was restored. Allegheny Art in Newtown, PA was closed thru last Thursday. Art Leaque in Alexandria, VA was closed for three days. Merion Art in Ardmore, PA and Sullivan’s in…