Wendy believes that she can be an even more effective advocate for our community as a U.S. Representative. After careful consideration, she has decided to run for Congress. She has filed to be a candidate in Maryland’s 1st Congressional District, where she lives.

Wendy Rosen

Wendy will continue to head the company that she has passionately built during the past 30 years. Of course, when the campaign season heats up, many of her day-to-day duties will be delegated to company managers and staff to ensure the success of the shows, the magazines and the training and advocacy programs. We have a capable team: As many of you know, Rebecca Rosen Mercado, our current show director, has worked for the company for three years.

We want to assure all of you that Wendy remains devoted to growing opportunities for artists and independent retailers. Her goal is to use her platform as a candidate to expand the national audience for American-made products.

The success of the trade shows (the Buyers Market of American Craft and NICHE: The Show) and the magazines (AmericanStyle and NICHE) is a testament to Wendy’s unwavering commitment to you and your businesses. She also remains devoted to the nonprofit Arts Business Institute, and the advocacy group, the American Made Alliance.

As always, Wendy is never too busy to talk to you about your business — and you can reach her here, or speak with her at one of our upcoming events. Our toll-free number is 1-800-432-7238 and you may send e-mail to info@rosengrp.com.

We all look forward to seeing you, and serving your business needs, during our 30th Anniversary Buyers Market trade show in Philadelphia, Feb. 18-20, 2012.

As outlined in the guidelines for candidates published by the Federal Elections Commission, Wendy’s campaign will operate independently of The Rosen Group and its divisions and affiliates. If you want to know more about her new adventure, visit WendyRosen.net.

Warm regards,
The Rosen Group
Dec. 16, 2011

CONTACT: Jean Thompson, Director, Public Relations, jeant@rosengrp.com

Buyers Market of American Craft

• Dates: February 18-20, 2012, with Jewelry Preview on February 17
• Location: Philadelphia, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center
• Buyers Registration: opens October 3, 2011, call 800-432-7238, ext. 272, or register online at www.buyersmarketofAmericancraft.com
• Exhibitor applications: Apply today at www.buyersmarketofAmericancraft.com or at www.zapplication.org.  For details, call 800-432-7238, ext. 227 or ext. 203.
• Note: The Buyers Market will celebrate its 30^th anniversary at the 2012 Winter show.

NICHE: The Show

• Dates: June 1-3, 2012, during Jewelry Week
• Location: Planet Hollywood, in Las Vegas
• Buyers Registration: opens late February.  For details, call 800-432-7238, ext. 272, or register online at www.NICHEtheShow.com
• Exhibitor applications: Applications will be available beginning October 3 at www.zapplication.org.  For details about exhibiting, dial 800-432-7238, ext. 202.

The Rosen Group will not produce a summer Buyers Market in 2012. The annual Merit Awards program for emerging artists and the Buyers Market guild booth program, highlights of the summer show, will move to February.

“Our goal this coming year is to consolidate and focus our talents, strengths and energies on making the winter show and NICHE: The Show the very biggest and best they can be,” said Wendy Rosen, president and CEO of The Rosen Group.  “When we survey our artists and buyers, they tell us they want us to grow these two shows, and continue working to expand the markets for American-made products to attract new buyers. We’re also taking steps this year to grow the Arts Business Institute, because it prepares emerging artists to succeed in wholesale.”

The Buyers Market and NICHE: The Show are wholesale to the trade only.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  Sept. 15, 2011  
MEDIA CONTACT:  Jean Thompson,  jeant@rosengrp.com, 800-432-7238, ext. 218

AmericanStyle readers are asked each year to vote for cities that welcome cultural tourism and excite collectors of art and fine craft. Through the poll, the readers tell the magazine about their favorite places to travel to visit art galleries, museums and festivals. They tell the magazine where they shop for art, and often identify new and emerging arts districts as well as old favorites. The rankings are divided so that cities and towns are competing with destinations of similar population size.

“The winning cities are magnets for art lovers and cultural travelers because they support and showcase their local arts entrepreneurs,” says Wendy Rosen, publisher of AmericanStyle.

City convention, tourism and arts promoters covet the AmericanStyle Top 25 Arts Destinations award. The winners’ list is carried annually by hundreds of travel publications and blogs, plus local, national and international news media. Often, the arrival of the award is a cause for celebration as well as news coverage.

On August 20, for example, Rosen will present a winners’ plaque to Mayor David Coss of Santa Fe, N.M., at the annual Indian Market showcasing the arts and culture of Native Americans. Santa Fe has earned a spot in the Top 25 rankings every year since the reader poll was established in 1998, and has placed among the Top 3 cities 11 out of 14 times. This year, Santa Fe took the No. 2 spot for Top Arts Destinations with a population of less than 100,000.

“We are honored to receive this recognition,” says Mayor Coss. “Santa Fe is a very creative community with a long history of supporting the arts. This recognition gives us added incentive to continue to be a creative city.”

Listed below are the top 10 winners in each category. See the complete list of winners, 75 in all, featured at www.americanstyle.com and in the Summer issue of AmericanStyle, now on newsstands and at major booksellers across the country.

Winners in the Big Cities category (populations of 500,000 or greater):
New York, N.Y.
Chicago, Ill.
Washington, D.C.
San Francisco, Calif.
Boston, Mass.
Albuquerque, N.M.
Atlanta, Ga.
Philadelphia, Pa.
Baltimore, Md.
Seattle, Wash.

Winners in the Mid-size Cities category (populations of 100,000 to 499,999)
St. Petersburg, Fla.
Savannah, Ga.
New Orleans, La.
Charleston, S.C.
Scottsdale, Ariz.
Ann Arbor, Mich.
Tampa, Fla.
Alexandria, Va.
Boulder, Colo.
Miami, Fla.

Winners in the Small Cities category (populations of less than 100,000)
Asheville, N.C.
Santa Fe, N.M.
Gloucester, Mass.
Saugatuck, Mich.
Sarasota, Fla.
Sedona, Ariz.
Key West, Fla.
Frederick, Md.
Taos, N.M.
Bradenton, Fla.

CONTACT: Jean Thompson, 800-432-7238, ext. 218, jeant@rosengrp.com

Artisans, entrepreneurs and advocates of American and Native American art and gift products to gather May 27-29

BALTIMORE (May 18, 2011) — When the concession-run stores in America’s national parks are sending thousands of visitors home with mostly Made in China souvenirs, who loses?

“All of us,” says Wendy Rosen, a gift industry leader who will travel to the Grand Canyon this Memorial Day Weekend for the first in a series of protests calling on National Park Service concession stores to carry more authentic American-made products.

The event is the kick-off of a national campaign to create jobs for American and tribal small businesses and studios that make gift, art and souvenir products. Artisans and advocates will distribute leaflets from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Friday through Sunday, May 27-29, outside the Bright Angel Gift Shop, at the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park.

“National Park Service concessioners have won the privilege to do business on federal land,” Rosen says, “but they have turned their backs on hundreds of American and Native American enterprises that desperately need manufacturing work to sustain families and communities. At a time when unemployment for these entrepreneurs is at a record high, and some tribal unemployment has reached 50 percent, National Park concessions could be creating jobs by putting authentic American-made merchandise on their store shelves.”

The demonstration is sponsored by the American Made Alliance and endorsed by the Council for Indigenous Arts and Culture and the Craft Emergency Relief Fund (CERF+). The American Made Alliance is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit trade association. Founded in 2005, the American Made Alliance engages in advocacy efforts supporting the start-up and growth of micro-enterprises in the professional craft sector. Through its campaigns, projects and partnerships, the American Made Alliance strives to open new market opportunities for American-made products; preserve the authenticity of American-made goods; prevent fraud regarding country of origin; and inform legislators and consumers about the importance of and economic impact of supporting American-made products and their producers.

For rally and campaign details: See www.americanmadealliance.org or e-mail AmericanMade@rosengrp.com.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Wendy Rosen, founder, American Made Alliance, wendy@rosengrp.com, 410-262-2872
Jean Thompson, communications director, jeant@rosengrp.com, 800-432-7238, ext. 218, or (cell) 443-845-6130

This summer, AmericanStyle will honor a retailer, organization, agency or individual who has made a significant contribution in 2010-2011 to the craft community and/or industry. The editors encourage readers to consider their local craft leaders worthy of national recognition. The winner could be a gallery, a collector, a craft guild or council, a tourism agency, a blogger – someone who has made a difference on behalf of American craft.

“We are casting a wide net to identify hidden gems, emerging art communities and retailing innovations that excite fine craft collectors, customers and enthusiasts,” says Hope Daniels, vice president of The Rosen Group and editor of AmericanStyle and NICHE magazines.

The deadline is June 6, 2011. To submit a nomination, use the online form here .

AmericanStyle is the premier national magazine for cultural travelers and collectors who love fine craft and artisan-made products. NICHE is a national trade magazine for retailers and galleries that sell handmade and jewelry, home accessories, fashions and other creations by American and Canadian artisans. Both magazines are published by The Rosen Group.

The AmericanStyle Honor Award was created this year in an expansion of the annual NICHE Top Retailers program, which recognizes great craft retailers. Winners of all the awards will be announced July 13, 2011, at the Buyers Market of American Craft trade show at the Baltimore Convention Center. See contest details at www.NICHEmagazine.com or call 800-432-7238, ext. 218.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jean Thompson, jeant@rosengrp.com

NICHE magazine will honor a Retailer of the Year, plus up to 15 Top Retailers. In addition, the magazine will recognize an advocacy effort that promoted Made in America craft; a cultural tourism project that shined a spotlight on craft retailers or artisans; and an individual who made a significant contribution to the craft industry or field in 2010-2011. The three new awards are open not just to retailers but also to individuals, organizations and agencies working to benefit the fine craft community. 

Retailers, artists, collectors and enthusiasts of American craft are invited to recommend candidates for any of the awards, using a nomination form that can be found at www.NICHEmagazine.com. This will mark the first year that NICHE has turned to the public to help identify top galleries and local craft community leaders. 

“NICHE is casting a wide net to identify hidden gems, emerging art communities and retailing innovations that excite fine craft collectors, customers and enthusiasts,” says Hope Daniels, editor of NICHE, the trade magazine for independent retailers of fine craft and artisan-made products.  “We want to recognize the increasing diversity of stores that carry studio and handmade works and the successful ways they meet contemporary challenges.”

The NICHE Top Retailer Awards program annually recognizes craft retailers, arts nonprofits, museum stores and guilds that are committed to fair business practices and working to strengthen the North American craft community.

Winners will be announced at a breakfast ceremony on Wednesday, July 13, 2011, at the Buyers Market of American Craft in Baltimore, and will be featured in an upcoming issue of NICHE.

NICHE is published by The Rosen Group, a Baltimore-based arts marketing, publishing and advocacy firm. The Rosen Group also publishes AmericanStyle magazine, www.AmericanStyle.com, an arts lifestyle magazine for enthusiasts, collectors and travelers, and produces the Buyers Market of American Craft, the nation’s premier tradeshow of fine craft and handmade products.

TWEET THIS: Seeking great retailers of American craft! Galleries, jewelers, museum stores. See Top Retailer Award details at www.NICHEmagazine.com. 

SUMMARY:
The search is on for great U.S. and Canadian gift shops, jewelry stores, museum stores and galleries devoted to selling artisan-made products. NICHE magazine’s 2011 Top Retailer Awards competition opens today with a call for entries in a host of new categories. Apply today! The deadline is June 6, 2011. See details at www.NICHEmagazine.com.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jean Thompson, 800-432-7238, ext. 218, jeant@rosengrp.com

BALTIMORE (Feb. 26, 2011) The dearth of American-made gift and souvenir products in the Smithsonian’s gift shops is an old problem that needs new solutions.

ABC World News with Diane Sawyer reported this week that most items sold in the Smithsonian shops are made in China. The reporters would have found similar situations had they visited the gift shops of many national parks and historic sites.

It’s not entirely fair to blame Uncle Sam: In many cases, these stores are managed by independent companies, contractors and concessionaires instead of federal agencies. Like all other retailers, they face pricetag pressures. At the end of the day, imports are often cheaper than American-made products.

At least the imports in the Smithsonian shops bear labels informing the consumer that the items are made in China. Less scrupulous retailers have taken to removing or covering country-of-origin labels, to dupe the shopper. Even more heinous are the collaborators who steal the designs of hard-working American artisans and manufacturers, commission knock-off goods overseas, and then send the look-alike products back into the U.S. market at prices that undercut the originals.

Make no mistake: This robs us all. It ruins the market for American made products, it deprives the originators of the value of their creations, and it destroys jobs for American small businesses. That, in turn, hurts Main Street’s economy and the communities we live in.

Senator Bernie Sanders ( I-Vt.) recently addressed this topic in a letter to Brent Glass, director of the National Museum of American History. The senator bemoaned the lack of American-made items in the museum store. He was correct when he wrote: “As a nation, we have all got to be aware that one of the major reasons unemployment in this country is so high is because it is increasingly difficult to find products in our nation’s stores that are manufactured in this country.”

In other words, price point is not the only point that matters. These businesses should recognize the privilege and symbolism inherent in their unique locations at taxpayer-owned and federally funded institutions. It is more than reasonable that cultural travelers, school groups, tourists and federal workers expect to find American products in the stores inside American institutions.

Outcry from policymakers and consumers will help, but we’ve heard it before. It’s going to take fresh ideas, collaboration and new policy to influence the stores to stock and promote more authentically American products.

Policy writers and lawmakers:

• Fund access-to-market education for the small, studio-based makers who can fill Uncle Sam’s stores with affordable American-made products. Yes, these manufacturers do exist. Organizations such as our American Made Alliance can identify thousands of them. Many are home-based or studio-based small businesses that are already filling orders from retailers. Many are unfamiliar with the federal procurement system through which some U.S. institution-based stores must acquire goods. Most do not sell through distributors. They are poised to grow and even to create jobs, if only they could win more contracts and orders on a national level. It starts with education.
• Help us fight the retail fraud that steals the American maker’s living. We need enforcement of existing country-of-origin indelible marking laws, which require a permanent identifying mark on imported products. Enforcement would deter the use of paper stickers that are easily removed or covered by a price tag.
• The smallest of the small manufacturers, solo ventures and studio-based businesses with three or fewer employees, need a voice at the policymaking table. Stop treating them like hobbyists: they are micro-enterprises. Amend your classification systems to accurately count them as manufacturers and calculate their contribution to the economy. Our industry’s last comprehensive study estimated that craft workers made a $14 billion economic impact, and that was based on data from several years ago; an update is in the works.

Retailers and concessionaires at taxpayer-owned institutions:

• Send your buyers to the wholesale tradeshows that exhibit authentically American-made jewelry, home and fashion accessories, souvenir items and art works. Slapping an institution logo or label on a cheap imported souvenir does not transform it into an American product. Instead, buy from local artisans who can customize products for you. Our database lists 88 federally backed museums, sites and parks with gift stores. Of these, only 10 have ever visited the Buyers Market of American Craft, the premier wholesale tradeshow showcasing products by U.S. and Canadian artisans.
• Follow the lead of the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, which recently held an informative public seminar for small businesses, outlining its procurement rules and its needs. By mandate, the Visitor Center’s two stores seek American-made products inspired by the Constitution, the Capitol Building, the Congress and historic legislation that shaped America. Also desired: high-quality American-made gift objects that federal workers and lawmakers can be proud to buy and give as gifts. Know that our nonprofit guilds and associations will work with you on getting the word out. “I can’t find an American maker” is a weak excuse if you have not reached out to give small producers a chance to compete.
• Sell more than a gift, sell a story: In our experience, the consumer who cares about product origin also cares to know about the maker and his materials, skills and processes. With mass-produced imports, you don’t get that promotional bonus. (In fact, given the record of human rights violations and worker exploitation in countries known as sources of knock-offs, the stories behind some products on your shelves might not instill pride.)

Artisans and small producers:

• Don’t be the needle in the haystack waiting for Uncle Sam to discover you. If you want to supply this market, study it and evaluate your product lines: Despite what you may think, you probably don’t have to paint your products red, white and blue to break in. Get involved in advocacy on behalf of small artisans and producers to learn about opportunities.

Consumers:

• Shop local. According to The 3/50 Project and other organizations that support America’s brick-and-mortar retailers, about 60 cents of every dollar you spend in local stores stay in your community. When you visit the nation’s capital and historic sites, ask for American-made and locally made products. Let your purchases be investments in the American dreams of studio artisans, cottage industries, small independent manufacturers. Your dollars recycle on Main Street. Don’t settle for a knock-off. Be part of the solution. Don’t know where to find American-made products? Start here: www.findAmericanmade.com

WENDY ROSEN is the founder of the American Made Alliance, a nonprofit trade association that engages in advocacy supporting fine craft artists and studios. She is the president and CEO of The Rosen Group, which publishes AmericanStyle magazine and produces the Buyers Market of American Craft wholesale tradeshows of artist-made products.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Communications director:
Jean Thompson, 800-432-7238, ext. 218 (office) or 443-845-6130 (cell)

You can view the finalists’ entries online and in person: A complete list of the finalists is posted at www.NICHEAwards.com.

Also, all of the finalists have been invited to display their entries in a NICHE Awards exhibit at the Buyers Market of American Craft, the nation’s premier wholesale tradeshow of fine craft, February 18-21, 2011, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia.

The finalists will gather at the Buyers Market for the annual reception and awards ceremony, where NICHE magazine will reveal the names of the winners. These festivities will take place on Friday, February 18, from 6-9 p.m. Admission is free for the finalists and for all registered attendees at the tradeshow.

The NICHE Awards competition annually recognizes excellence and innovation in North American craft made by professionals and students. Jurors have selected 230 finalists out of almost 1,600 entries (combined total of professional and student entries).

The professional division was judged by: Paige Riley, owner of Hillyer House gallery in Ocean Springs, Miss.; Diane Shelly, executive director of the Florida Craftsmen in St. Petersburg; David W. Cochran, CEO and president of Manufacturing Jewelers & Suppliers of America (MJSA) in Attleboro Falls, Mass.; Tara Gentile, editor of the craft blog Scoutie Girl; Cheryl Hartley, general manager of Tamarack: The Best of West Virginia gallery in Beckley; and Oanh Nguyen, president of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the Women’s Jewelry Association (WJA).

The student division finalists were determined by the editors of NICHE and AmericanStyle magazines and the staff of the Buyers Market of American Craft.

The professional division finalists will be featured in the Winter 2011 issue of NICHE magazine.
The award winners in the professional and student divisions will be featured in the Spring 2011 issue of NICHE.

In the final three weeks of voting, art festivals across the country will jockey for first place on the list. The ballot allows voters to choose up to three art events from a list of more than 100 fairs and festivals, or to write in any other art event.

One lucky voter will be chosen at random to receive a $500 travel certificate.

Voters can cast their ballots online at AmericanStyle.com or by using the ballot in the Fall issue of the magazine, currently on newsstands.

Results of the Top 10 Art Fairs and Festivals readers’ poll will be published in the Spring 2011 issue of AmericanStyle magazine, on newsstands in mid-February 2011 and online. The special issue will feature a profile of each of the winning art fairs and festivals.

WILL YOUR FESTIVAL BE A WINNER?  Encourage your festival supporters to vote online through your website and social media pages. 

About AmericanStyle Magazine
First published in 1994, AmericanStyle magazine is the national arts lifestyle magazine for enthusiasts, collectors and travelers. Published quarterly, AmericanStyle can be found online and on newsstands nationwide, featuring articles on contemporary artists, collectors, arts travel and art events.  AmericanStyle’s annual readers’ polls have earned the magazine national recognition for being the premier arts travel resource.  For additional information, please contact Lisa Fritsch at lisaf@rosengrp.com.

      Saving jobs and spurring growth in the creative economy are so important that the message must be carried to Washington by any means necessary, says Wendy Rosen, a national arts advocate and organizer of a group of art-industry rally-goers from the Mid-Atlantic region.

      “Maybe a little humor will help deliver the message: It’s Not My Hobby, It’s My Job!” Rosen says about the rally sponsored by Comedy Central, and merging events called by The Daily Show’s host Jon Stewart and political satirist Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report.

      “Supporting artist studios and small shops that carry local and handmade items is the best way to help the local economy, and rebuild communities for a more sustainable future,” Rosen says. “History has shown that many small towns have become top arts destinations because artists have built creative communities and districts that attract cultural tourists. It starts with these smallest of small businesses and then the restaurants and inns and bigger businesses follow. We need Washington to understand the importance of Main Street and to support economic development initiatives that make opportunities for artists’ businesses.”

          The issue is employment, Rosen says. As designers and makers of home, fashion and gift products, arts entrepreneurs often are self-employed or employing fewer than 25   workers. Their jobs depend on a robust economy in which their work can sell on Main Street. Yet their needs as small businesses too often fall below the radar of federal agencies that could lend support.

         “When the Small Business Administration is focused on the needs of the smallest – the art entrepreneurs and the studios that are micro-manufacturers – then we’ll see a different type of economic development model, one that restores beautiful Main Streets and builds communities,” Rosen says. “Right now, jobs are being created by the smallest of small businesses –not those with a government-defined size of up to 500 employees, but those with fewer than 25 employees.”

       Congress should rewrite the government’s definition of ‘small business’ so that these artisans and art dealers can be included and can benefit in programs to aid job creation and recovery, Rosen says.   
      Rosen is founder of the American Made Alliance, a nonprofit trade association that advocates on behalf of makers and retailers of handmade artisan products. Her company, The Rosen Group, publishes AmericanStyle magazine, for cultural tourists and art collectors.

Contacts: Wendy Rosen, American Made Alliance, wendy@rosengrp.com, 800-432-7238, ext. 226, or marketing director, Jean Thompson, jeant@rosengrp.com, 800-432-7238, ext. 218, or cell 443-845-6130.