Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion - The She-EO of Everything


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(a) Mary closed all her stores except the St. Louis flagship, after realizing that retail was more than a side business. “I don’t look at that as a defeat or a failing, just as a change,” she says. “You can learn from anything that happens, bad or good.” (b) An early business card.

Mary Engelbreit’s voice echoes in a nearly empty room. Her company, Mary Engelbreit Studios, has moved into a new space, one that’s “bright and nice and warm.” Soon it will be filled with cute characters that sprang from her imagination and now adorn 6,500 products and net nearly $100 million in retail sales each year.
By now, most of us know that the Princess of Quite a Lot spent hours of her childhood holed up in her “studio” (a tiny linen closet), drawing pictures to go with the stories her mother told her. She copied the style of artists she admired: Johnny Gruelle of Raggedy Ann and Andy and fairy-tale illustrators Kay Nielsen, Arthur Rackham, and Jessie Willcox Smith. “I never went to art school. I drew stuff over and over, working really hard to get things the way I wanted them to look.”
After high school, her boss at an advertising agency taught her invaluable skills for making a living as an artist, such as how to charge for art and when to protect it. Mary’s first major success, nearly 30 years ago, stemmed from 12 greeting cards she took to a stationery trade show. A publishing company approached her about doing a calendar, and then New York Magazine featured one of her cards, giving her instant legitimacy.

MARY’S TRIED-AND-TRUE TIPS
Hoping to turn your art into business? Some advice from Mary:
Do your homework. What kind of products are your illustrations appropriate for? What companies might be interested in your style? “Have a focused sense of what you do and where it might fit in the market,” Mary says.
Go to trade shows. “It’s really helpful for beginners to know what’s out there.”
Protect yourself and your art. Mary counts herself lucky that nobody stole the drawings she didn’t copyright during her early years. “If you reach the point where you’re ready to start sending stuff out, you need to learn about copyrights and trademarks.”

Mary admits it’s not easy to produce artwork that she loves while keeping the whims of an ever-evolving marketplace in mind. She calls herself the “She-EO” of Mary Engelbreit Studios, running the business side of the company and creating and overseeing the artwork. Her staff helps adapt her illustrations to thousands of different products.
   “It’s an adjustment, trying to find time to do it all,” she says. “Luckily, I like to draw at home late at night, so I do the business part during the day.”
   She’s never too busy for HOME COMPANION, now celebrating its 10th year. “I love showing how artists and others express themselves creatively through their homes.”
   As if that weren’t enough, a few years ago Mary returned to her childhood love of illustrating stories with Mary Engelbreit’s The Night Before Christmas, a bestseller published by HarperCollins Children’s Books. She’s currently lending her timeless style to a book of classic nursery tales, a companion to Mary Engelbreit’s Mother Goose, published in 2005. Next is a collection of fairy tales.
   Don’t expect Mary to rest on her laurels. “The real kick is doing what I love to do. To tell you the truth, the most exciting moment for me was seeing one of my books at the library. I felt that meant that I had really made it!”

After high school, Mary worked at an art supply store and an advertising agency. “That was my college experience. I don’t think I could have gotten a better education.” (c) Mary with Stephanie Barken, creative director at ME Studios.

(d) “Life is Just a Chair of Bowlies” (by far Mary’s most beloved illustration) came to be after Mary overheard the common expression misspoken by a former boyfriend’s father. The card marked the debut of Mary’s cherry-themed artwork and has inspired thousands of products.

Mary’s motivation? Deadlines. “As long as I know that people are depending on me, I can get it done.” (e) Mary with Gloria Reilly, senior product development manager. (f) Mary chats with (clockwise from left) Beth Lauver, marketing manager; Alexa Anderson, art project manager; Jan Edmiston, administrative and facilities manager; and Erin Vonder Bruegge, product development manager.

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