Robert W. Deutsch Arts & Technology Policy Fellow Courtney Duffy is part of the Fractured Atlas team that is spearheading the 2016 Arts Entrepreneurship Awards. You can find her on Twitter @cduffy90. Join the conversation at #ArtsEntreAwards.
Having the chance to honor innovators and creative risk takers through the Arts Entrepreneurship Awards is one of our favorite annual traditions. We’re thrilled to share that this year’s nominations for the Arts Entrepreneurship Awards open up this Thursday, November 19. As we continue ramping up, we thought it would be fun to check in on some of our AEA alums.
First up is New York City-based Of a Kind. Co-founders Claire Mazur and Erica Cerulo have leveraged the power of the Internet to build audiences for emerging fashion and product designers, profiling on the site a different up-and-coming designer every week who creates a special piece for Of a Kind customers. Let’s get an update on what they’ve been doing since their 2014 win.
What has Of a Kind been up to since the Arts Entrepreneurship Awards win?
Erica: We’ve really been expanding the kind of content that Of a Kind creates — we now have a weekly podcast on Heritage Radio Network about all of our latest discoveries that you should listen to! Also, in July of this year, we sold the business to Bed Bath & Beyond, a company that very much believes in what we’re building and our mission to support up-and-coming designers.
[*Editor’s note: We agree, you should listen to their podcast! You can find it here].
Is there a distinct memory that sticks out and made you realize “I’m an entrepreneur”?
Erica: When I was about eight, I would set up a store in my room to sell things to my brothers, and then, when they showed up, I would fawn over something that I would claim wasn’t for sale (like, um, a bar of soap) until they offered up all of their allowance for it. This resulted in ample profits…and little-boy tears.
Claire: The day we paid back all of our investors. It also happens to be the day we sold our business, but what made it really significant for me in the entrepreneurial sense was that what had been risky bets (with the potential to end up as, uh, very expensive donations towards my and Erica’s business educations) became solid investment decisions. We didn’t just make money for ourselves from that transaction — we made it for them, too. We created real value.
Back in 2014, you offered this piece of advice to aspiring arts entrepreneurs: “Think of yourself like a business. One that has to make more money than it spends. One that has to think about things like marketing, press, and balance sheets. Nobody benefits from you being a ‘starving artist’ — not you, not your audience, and not your industry.” Do you have any additional words of wisdom to add?
Claire: Ooh, I like that quote. Good one, 2014 version of us!
Erica: To quote Friday Night Lights (and, more specifically, Coach Taylor — because why not?): “You can’t beat yourself up because you’re taking chances on things.” We’ve tried a lot of things with Of a Kind that haven’t panned out, but the wins have been equally unexpected.
What’s next for Of a Kind?
Claire: Building out an (ever-so-slightly) bigger and more senior team than we’ve ever had before. Up until now, Erica and I have been so entrenched in the day-to-day that it’s been tough to think about big picture things. The challenge for us will be letting go of some of the smaller details (and our proclivity for micromanagement) so that we have time to do it.
You can find Claire and Erica featured along with the other 2014 Arts Entrepreneurship Awards winners here. Stay tuned for more Where Are They Now? blog posts coming down the pike!
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