An Industry Veteran Shares Her Wisdom
 Marilyn Hajjar, manager of ARCH Drafting and Graphic Supply in San Francisco’s Potrero Hill neighborhood, discusses the advantages of a buying group, and the importance of high-quality art materials in today’s discount world.
“I have been a member of NAMTA since 1985 and have attended all but two conventions. In the last 10 years, I have seen the chains and the big discounters really thwart the growth of independents. One thing our store has done in response to this trend is to join iAMart, a buyers’ group that now includes 40 member stores in 22 states.
“I am in the middle of my second term as president of iAMart. It has been a wonderful relationship-builder for us. It has strengthened many of our ties with distributors, and has made manufacturers more aware of the value of independent retailers.
“We create volume-buying programs with distributors and manufacturers that benefit all our members stores, small or large, and we create buying opportunities that allow us to circumvent some of the more restrictive aspects of buying directly. Working together as a group gives us greater credibility because of our larger combined buying base. We get together and consider proposals from the major distributors before selecting one preferred distributor for a three-year period. We make a commitment for that length of time because we know it really does require an investment of time to make that relationship work for everybody. We are not trying to alienate other distributors. We all know we’re going to buy from everybody, but when we can, we try to support the distributor that is supporting us.
“One of the things I have learned in this business, having been in it as long as I have, is that you don’t want to alienate anybody. You never know whom you’re going to work with in the future. That’s on both sides of the equation – on the supply side and the customer side. I happen to believe that your paycheck ultimately comes from the person who’s buying the materials, and you have to be there for them. You have to cultivate the sense that they can’t do their art without you. But, when MAP pricing came into the industry, the real questions of how to create customer loyalty became a pressing issue.
“If you’re a serious artist and you are selling your work well, the cost of material for each piece is marginal compared to the amount of brain work that went into it. If you’re expecting to get a lot of money out of a finished piece, you should use the absolute best materials you can get to produce it. Quality should always beat out concerns of price.
“I teach art to adults, many of them professional artists. When one of them comes in with a great drawing on a piece of newsprint, I question what they’re going to do with it. I urge my students not to use something they’re going to regret using later on, to always use the best materials they can afford at all times. In the end, it’s going to pay off because the product is going to come out better, too.
“Looking at what has happened in this industry over the years gives me great hope. I am seeing new art materials come onto the market again, really great new items like the Encaustikos line. Few people would have foreseen that the ancient art of painting with wax would come full-circle and be such an exciting medium. It’s fun. When I was in art school, my only choice really was oil paint, because acrylics really hadn’t made their way into the art world as a serious medium. Now look what we’ve got! In particular, I love that we have more American-made materials again. I take a very serious look at where something’s made before bringing it into the store.”
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ARCH is a quirky, customer-centric, dog-friendly store where Otto, a Boston terrier, greets people out front and Barley, an Otter Hound, can be found in the office. |
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