Irving V. “Top” Augur passed away on February 3rd at the age of 87 in Palm Desert, CA. Top was a visionary in the art & craft industry. He was the leader and guiding spirit of Southern California’s Leisure Crafts which began its life under the company name MacPherson’s Stationers. He founded VanAken Clay, makers of Jaz Tempera and VanAken Modeling Clays. Top retired when Leisure Crafts was sold to ArtCraft in 1994. He was a world traveler and bon vivant. Top is survived by his children Roger, Maggie, Robert and Carol. A memorial service celebrating Top’s life will be  held at  11:00am on  Friday, February 18th at Saint Margaret’s Episcopal Church in…

In Memory of John Ward As many of you know, the art supply industry lost one of its friends and members this year, in the passing of John Michael Ward, owner of National Art Supply in New Orleans LA. John, only 45 years old, was killed in a tragic accident on February 14, 2010, shortly after attending one of the many traditional New Orleans events that he loved, the Marti Gras Endymion parade. John and his wife Nat purchased National Art & Hobby from John’s uncle Ben in 1995 and have worked there with pride and passion for the arts ever since. John was a lover and supporter of the arts.…

With profound sadness we report the death of Peter Lenz, the 13-year old grandson of Andy and Cynthia Lenz owners of Lenz Art in Santa Cruz, CA. Peter was a motorcycle racing phenom. He was killed doing the thing he loved best, racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in a practice lap prior to the start of the U.S. Grand Prix Riders Union race. He had been one of the top youth riders in the nation. Our heart goes out to the entire Lenz clan. Peter Lenz Article

March 26, 2010- Many in the Art Supply Industry are shocked at the news that Jay Shapiro, co-owner of Binders’s in Atlanta and Charlotte passed away last night. Michael Hammer sums up beautifully a sentiment held deeply by many of us,”Jay was a good friend to so many…a kind, compassionate man who cared deeply about his family, his partner Howard Krinsky, their employees, customers and suppliers. My prayers are are also with his wife Andee and their 3 beautiful boys, Stuart, Scott and Max;  as well as Howard and the Binders’ family.” Jay was diagnosed with brain cancer a few short weeks ago and waged a valiant fight. Details about…

It is with deep sadness that I announce the passing of our friend and colleague Lanny Rosenbaum. As many of you know, Lanny had been fighting a courageous battle against pancreatic cancer for the past two years. He died yesterday—October 26, 2009. Lanny joined the Blick family in 1997 as Vice President of Sales and Marketing. During his 12 years with the company, he was instrumental in identifying and developing a variety of catalog, internet, and private label growth opportunities. Despite his health challenges, Lanny continued to be a driving force within Blick over the past two years. As recently as September of this year, he participated in the company’s…

Newell Rubbermaid, parent company of Sanford Business-to-Business, announced it would close its Sanford operations in Janesville, WI early next year, laying off 153 workers. Sanford is the last remnant of the former Parker Pen company, a company that in many ways defined Janesville. On August 20th Candy Meininger, sister and former business partner of Henry, died in her sleep at home. She had valiantly battled colon cancer for the past two years. She will be missed by many in our industry who knew and respected her. Candy’s memorial service will be held on Saturday August 29 at 11:30am at Horan & McConaty on South Colorado Blvd at East Mississippi (1091…

It is with great sadness and sincere admiration that we report the passing of an old friend, Bob Fisher on August 4, 2009. He was 59 years old.  Bob was an amazing presence in our industry. First as the consummate creative and professional retail manager at Taylor’s Art Center in Sacramento, CA where he worked for over 20 years, then as western regional sales manager at ColArt where he smashed sales records while winning the loyalty and respect of a diverse team, and finally back to retail in a guiding role at University Art working out of its Sacramento stores. A little over a year ago Bob was hit down …

More store closings: In New York, NY Irving Berlin Art Supplies on East 37th Street closed in January Retraction: The following report regarding Design Partners in New York was erroneous. We regret any difficulties this may have caused to the owner Brian Lehrer: “Design Partners on 7th Avenue will be closing in the near future.” Michaels has announced that effective April 15, 2009 John B. Menzer,  formerly Vice Chairman and Chief Administrative Officer of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and  President of Ben Franklin Retail, will  replace Brian C. Cornell as  CEO. Mr Cornell has resigned recently and has accepted a position as Chief  Executive Officer of Sam’s Club.  “I am extremely…

AC Moore’s CEO Rick Lepley is featured in a recent post at the Philly dotcom web site. If you would like to learn more about what makes the head of this art & craft chain store tick, click on this link Rick Lepley, CEO AC Moore. Charges have been filed in connection with the June 16 fire that destroyed a Marshall manufacturing plant. Sherri Joyce Hill, 44, of Quinlan, faces the first-degree felony charge of arson for the blaze that destroyed the Activa Products, Inc., manufacturing facility. News Messenger file photo Ms. Hill, formerly of Marshall, had been an employee of Activa and had resigned a short time prior to…

Creative Catalog Concepts is pleased to announce that industry veteran and retail superstar Mark Sorak has joined the company as Director of Merchandising for the Art Materials division. In this role, Mark will be responsible for coordinating with manufacturers, retailers and MacPherson’s to produce retail marketing pieces that include the 2009 Sourcebook, seasonal sale flyers, promotional calendars and on-line stores. Clairefontaine, maker of the best selling Rhodia Pads is feeling the profit margin squeeze:  Office Products International(OPI) Magazine reports that France-based paper stationery manufacturer Exacompta Clairefontaine has seen first quarter pre-tax profit drop by over 50%. Congratulations to Cindy and Craig Lemley of Dakota Art in Mt Vernon, WA. who…

Mark Sorak, General Manager of Store Operations has left Binder’s in Atlanta and is looking to join another growing company in the industry. Mark has also worked at Utrecht and Pearl. Contact Mark at msorak@yahoo.com or 404-219-2873. Tonya Hill has opened a consulting/marketing business called McGinn Hill Consultants specializing in sales training and management, event marketing and market strategy. She brings 20 years of experience in the art and craft industry. Tonya’s phone is 704-224-7311 and her email address is tonya@mhconsultants.net Sign of the Times Dept: Susan Kocsis (Search Press) informs us that Craftrends Magazine will cease publication effective immediately. Craftrends and CNA were the two trade publications for the…

Correction: We posted an inaccurate report in last month’s ArtiFAX/Art Dog Blog. Purveyors of Art, in Boone, NC has closed its original location and moved 8 miles up the road to new and better facility in Foscoe, NC. Ed Ras has accepted a position as National Sales Manager/Art and Craft with the Daylight Company. He will be heading up the sales efforts across North America (including Canada and Mexico) starting today. The past head of sales, Tom Moore, had left and is pursuing other opportunities. Daylight is based in the UK with offices worldwide. At Jo-Ann’s, Keri Montgomery, Assistant Merchandise Manager/Fine Arts has been promoted effective July 21st to Assistant…

Purveyors of Art, in Boone, NC has closed their original location and moved 8 miles up the road to new and better facility. Mike Mayerck, a respected industry rep for over 20 years and formerly with Grimstad Comerford Group, has taken a position as National Accounts Manager with 3L Corporation of Denmark. With sadness we report that Ron Nelson, MacPherson’s customer service rep extraordinaire, has resigned. Ron has been “Mr. MacPherson’s” for nearly 29 years and his resignation was a personal decision that he has been considering for some time. He always took great pride in helping each of our customers through challenging situations and took a similar pride in…

Our best wishes to Bob Brown, former head of Daler-Rowney USA, who has been battling cancer. ColArt, producer and marketer of the Winsor & Newton and Liquitex brands, has announced a USA Minimum Advertised Pricing (MAP) program. The program encompasses ColArt’s premium brands and will be phased in over the next 9 months. For complete details on this and all other MAP programs that we are aware of, visit the Dealer Zone at www.macphersonart.com. Michaels Executive VP and Managing Director Harvey Kanter has resigned effective May 25 to pursue a top leadership role at another company. Until his replacement is named, the merchandising organization will report to CEO Brian Cornell. Mike Parker,…