History |
||||
Once upon a time in the early nineties an old inventor disappeared into his
basement workshop with recycled papers, hand tools, various glues, and one
young idea. This young idea came to him at Christmas time when children made
paper beads and strung them around the holiday tree. He emerged from the
cellar two years later with a paper bead perfect for the fashion industry.
It was light as feathers, colorful as a peacocks, and you could wash or dry
clean it. A year later this innovator went back to his basement, fastened five beads together, and emerged soon after with a lightweight, graceful pen barrel. The tall, elegant pens made from these barrels became known as Giraffe Pens and the company that made them, UrbanArt. The Bucklers of Fifth Avenue began immediately to ship these pens as their premium line. Retail sales the first year reached nearly $100,000. UrbanArt designed accessories and jewelry and sold these items directly to stores around the country. Soon Giraffe Pens were joined by Feathered Friends Pens and Menagerie Pens. Then followed lapel/hat pins, hair sticks, necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. Potentials in Advertising took notice of these lightweight, colorful products in their February 1996 issue. UrbanArt began to feed this inventor. Encouraged, the old man returned a last time to the basement. He had some exquisite drop forged bronze figures he wanted to add to the pens. He did this by reinforcing the original pen with a brass interior column. The new pen was as handsome and substantial as the original graceful and light. It seemed to have been born in the Middle Ages. UrbanArt baptized this pen the Museum Pen. Within months it appeared in these fine New York stores: Nicolina’s Boutique, La Madison Moderne, The Gallery of Wearable Art, The Brooklyn Museum Shops, and The American Craft’s Museum Store. Here they retailed between $38.00 and $67.00 and moved faster than anyone expected. The story isn’t finished. When this fellow returns from the Bahamas we intend to send him back to the basement. Meanwhile you can get more information by contacting us directly:
|
||||
Bead
House, NY, began to wholesale this bead and The American Jewelry
Manufacturer’s Association featured this new process in Issue No.9.