(This article, reprinted with permission, featuring Jacob Reidy, class of 2002, appeared in The Columbus Dispatch on July 4, 2008)  7/12/08

All-American art
Columbus Web site focuses exclusively on selling U.S. decor, craft, jewelry items

By Braden Lammers

From left, Tom Reidy, Vicky Reidy, Matt Kowal and Jacob Reidy offer something for both the American artist and the collector of American art on their Web site, www.bestamericanarts.com. Artists have nominated their effort for best Web site, best new store and top retailer for 2008 in Niche magazine. Necklace and earrings by Kendra Roberts of Kendra Studio Jewellery

"Made in America" is a label consumers often look for on the apparel and household products they buy, but when people are shopping for art, it is not usually the first thing on their minds.

One Columbus company is trying to change that.

"Like most people in Ohio, I'm tired of seeing jobs exported," said Tom Reidy, chief executive of Best American Artists and Artisans Inc.

Best American is a Web site developed with both the American artist and the collector of American art in mind. The site features work ranging from home decor and crafts to jewelry and personal accessories, all made exclusively by American artists. The work of 44 artists is featured on the site, www.bestamericanarts.com.

"Unless you're willing to go to art festivals on the weekend, you're going to miss a lot of American art," Reidy said.

Reidy, along with his wife, Vicky, who's president of the company, and their son, Jacob, the operations manager and webmaster, have taken their hobby and put it online.

"We try to select the best art from around the country and bring it into people's homes," Jacob Reidy said.

Since Jacob started working with his father at Best American Arts, they have been looking for talented artists mainly at wholesale shows, Tom Reidy said.

The largest show they attend is a juried art show called Buyers Market of American Craft, held biannually in Philadelphia.

The family decides which artists' work to put on the Web site, Jacob Reidy said. They pool their opinions on the artist and the work, and they also allow their friends to turn them onto new talent.

The Reidys' business buys art and then resells it in some cases, and in others takes a percentage of the sale of items displayed on the site.

One company featured on the site is GG2G, which makes bags and accessories from recycled billboard vinyl.

Co-owners Dayan Moore and Alison Grieveson met Tom and Jacob Reidy at the Philadelphia show and have been using their Web site to market their art.

"Our niche is not just handmade; it's green and eco-friendly," Moore said.

Moore said their company's profits are up 60 percent from last year, citing the environmentally friendly aspect of their business as helping their company thrive despite a slowing economy.

GG2G may be an exception rather than the rule.

"When I do talk to artists, they say their sales have been slower, so they have to go to more markets," said Betty Talbott, director of the Ohio Craft Museum. "They are having to work harder to (maintain) normal sales," she said.

To compete with cheaper items made in foreign markets, Best American Art is showing the value of the U.S.-made pieces by sharing the story behind the art, the creativity and craftsmanship, Jacob Reidy said.

While prices on the items range from $25 to more than $1,000, most of the sales are in the $40 to $80 price range, Tom Reidy said.

"People are being cautious (about) what they're spending and when they're buying, they're spending less," Tom Reidy said.

The artists appreciate that the Reidys are putting their art in the forefront.

"The American-made aspect in what Tom and Jacob are doing is really nice," Moore said. "We have so much competition … specifically with Asia price-wise. It's very hard to stay competitive."

Tom Reidy said the handbags have been one of their more popular items, but in terms of sales, the jewelry on the site has been heads and shoulders above everything else.

Kendra Roberts, jewelry artist and maker at Kendra Studio Jewellery, specializes in mosaic-inlay jewelry.

"It's really his enthusiasm that sold me on working with (Tom)," she said. "There is something about working with a father-and-son team … They really do their homework, they really treat the artist well."

The artists have shown their support by nominating Best American Artists and Artisans for best Web site, best new store and top retailer for 2008 in Niche magazine.

"Artisans get to vote on the Web site," Tom Reidy said. "I was like, 'Wow, they actually asked the artisans.' That really meant a lot to us."

Niche magazine will announce their winners at the Buyers Market of American Craft in August.

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