While you’re here, take a peek at a sampling of excellent press and media coverage our members have received as a result of participating in The Artisan Group‘s opportunities.
“As a member of TAG I’ve had 15 different jewelry pieces placed on 13 different shows and several gifting opportunities to connect with a variety of celebrities. In addition to these opportunities, TAG has not only helped my business grow but helped me grow as an artist. Valerie has created a wonderful organization. She is supportive and always looking for ways to help her artists grow!”
Kari Asbury Kari Asbury Jewelry January 2, 2020
“Three years ago I took a leap to join TAG and hoped that it would be a nice way to round out my marketing efforts. What I was not anticipating was the truly amazing community and multitudes of opportunity that are directly connected to this amazing group. With 5 placements to date and the hope of more, I can say with certainty that joining The Artisan Group has been the best investment I have made for my brand.”
dani keith dani keith designs January 2, 2020
“One of the most valuable parts of being a member of The Artisan Group is the community that you become a part of. There is a constant network of shared ideas, helpful hints, and support from other members and the administrative team works relentlessly to make sure members are included in the best shows and events and are always coming up with new ideas to help us better our small businesses.
The Artisan Group does more than just help you get your foot in the door. Members of TAG have cultivated celebrity clientele, had pieces worn in major feature films, been seen on countless TV shows and have been featured in numerous articles and talk shows. I personally have been featured in several articles and have had my pieces worn in more than a dozen films and television shows. That is something that as a small town, small business owner I never considered I would be able to accomplish. The Artisan Group made that happen.”
Morgan Bassett Wicked Lovely January 2, 2020
“TAG is such a fabulous resource for small businesses and artisans to get their work featured in celebrity events. Valerie runs a very tight ship and the opportunities she provides to the maker community is priceless. I had a ring featured on The Vampire Diaries and was beyond pleased and I found my clients were thrilled and impressed.”
Barbara Klar Barbara Klar Jewelry December 31, 2019
“Being a member of The Artisan Group has given me the opportunity to have my work seen by many costume designers. It has also provided me with the chance to have my work featured on popular network shows such as Staging Christmas, a Lifetime Movie and The Orville television series.I wouldn’t be able reach out to the television and movie costume designers on my own. Being a member of TAG has opened doors that are normally closed to unknown jewelry and accessory designers. I’m grateful to Valerie for showcasing our work to numerous costume designers.”
Linda Suarez Grandstaff Suarez Silver Jewelry December 30, 2019
“Becoming a member of The Artisan Group has been such a blessing to my business! My jewelry has been worn on 5 television shows, but besides that, the wealth of knowledge and support gained from these fellow artisans has encouraged me to keep taking my business to the next level!”
Billie Hackett Amayeli December 30, 2019
“I want to give huge, enormous Thank You to Valerie for providing such an amazing opportunity for artisans! Her amazing creation – The Artisan Group – has given me much needed confidence in my developing brand and sense of belonging with like-minded creative people. Valerie is so sweet and works so hard on finding opportunities for us artisans and she is constantly helping our handmade businesses to thrive! I am forever thankful for finding TAG. Looking forward to start an amazing new year and I am confident that my new handmade luxury jewelry and accessory business will thrive with TAG help!”Anastasia Kristala KRISTALA December 30, 2019
“We have had an amazing month due to The Artisan Group. We gifted the media and press at the event honoring the Golden Globes. The Tuesday after the Golden Globes we landed a TV interview with our local news. A week after that we landed a wholesale deal from them seeing the interview on TV about the gifting and our new soap program that we have. We are now officially in our Local Hyvee Grocery store due to all the press we have landed! A huge THANKS to Valerie Guerrero for all her hard work and giving us these opportunities!”
Cheryl Mitchell Miss Doyle's Soapery January 31, 2018
“A huge shout of gratitude to Valerie Guerrero for her tremendous part in helping our brand emerge into the limelight! I started House of Matriarch as a one woman show six years ago and now we are a 13 person operation across 9 states with an artisan brand valued in the millions and a new retail partner: Nordstrom!
A huge contributor to us becoming the only ‘truly artisan’ perfume brand currently on-shelf of a major luxury retailer is that we decided to fully optimize our membership in TAG and took on every offer to participate in giftings for 2014 & 2015. It was a lot of work for us and stretched us beyond our normal capacity, plus it was expensive to gift so much merchandise, (and all those leather pouches!) but we knew we were planting good seeds and we stayed committed to being all-in. I just had a feeling it would pay off.
We spent over 100 hours on social media follow up’s after events, and it greatly expanded our reach and fan base. Having the celebrity piece rounded out our presentation to show that we were good enough to make the cut and that trendsetters and celebrities liked our aesthetic and our perfumes. There was also a hidden benefit: working with Valerie on all of the events readied us for the rigorous requirements and demands of dealing with retail buyers and logistics to get our product on the shelf at Nordstrom.
Valerie runs a tight ship but TAG’s requirements and procedures are a cakewalk compared to big retail. Not all artisans want to go bigger, but if you do, TAG is the perfect training ground to measure if you are ready for the demands of a retail partner. I can’t say enough how much we appreciate your excellence and the platform you have created here for artisans to grow and be seen. We are forever grateful to you, Valerie for your part in our growth and success!”
Christi Meshell House of Matriarch July 11, 2016
“As a former marketing professional I know that PR initiatives are the foundation to really building a brand following. In my experience, traditional PR with an agency, can be really expensive and unsatisfying. Ideas are pitched, perhaps there’s follow through or placement sometimes there isn’t, and then it’s often a mention in a publication that is old news by the time it makes it to print. When I started Soap Cauldron in 2011, I knew we needed PR but my budget was bare bones. When I found The Artisan Group I immediately knew this was our answer.
This evolution of the traditional PR Agency into a PR Cooperative is really brilliant. It allows the small entrepreneur to be able to set and meet an affordable PR budget while getting real results. PR is only one aspect of a marketing plan but it is a critical one. We joined in 2012 with what our budget could afford, celebrity gifting and press gifting. By 2013 we could afford to do a table top event with celebrity gifting. The results were good, our store accounts liked our creating buzz about our brand and we were able to leverage that momentum to additional store placements. Eventually we succeeded in getting into Whole Foods as well as several gift accounts and smaller natural food chains.
We maximized our efforts by utilizing social media to extend the conversation around our brand. We love being part of a cooperative and being able to participate affordably in at least two events per year. While it’s easy to feel the “spend of product and participation” at the moment, when viewed over the course of a year it’s really just a few hundred per month. I’ve never had such great PR on such a modest budget. The Artisan Group has great events and keeps it’s identify fresh with so many different artists. People want the gift bags and that says a great deal. My company has grown consistently at over 40% a year since we opened shop and I honestly feel that the PR by The Artisan Group has been a central aspect of that. For us it’s go big or go home. Here are some of the great placements we’ve had as members.”
Emma Mann Soap Cauldron July 11, 2016
“I have been a member of The Artisan Group for several years now and it has been one of the best business decisions I could have made! My business has grown leaps and bounds since becoming a member and getting so much exposure via the amazing opportunities The Artisan Group provides for its members has been priceless.
Valerie Guerrero is a true professional and her organization and knowledge is invaluable. Every event is so organized and so much care and attention to detail is taken in everything she does.
Through the Artisan Group, my work has been worn on 5 television shows so far and my work has been featured by Bridal Guide Magazine, DaySPA Magazine, several influential beauty vloggers, and so many more!
The opportunities are not even the best part of The Artisan Group in my opinion. It’s the community feel of the group as a whole, the like-minded small business individuals coming together to help each other grow and succeed. I have made many wonderful friendships through The Artisan Group and through the group and the opportunities offered, I have pushed myself and gained the confidence to really put my work out there and even make collections I normally may not have thought to do. The amount of exposure, press and sales that have come about thanks to The Artisan Group is truly incredible and I am forever grateful to the group and Valerie for my business growth over the past few years!”
Tara Reid Starletta Designs July 10, 2016
“I can’t say enough about The Artisan Group or it’s fearless leader Valerie Guerrero. Since joining the group, my jewelry has been on multiple network TV shows and featured in various media outlets. One of the best aspects of being a member is networking with the other motivated entrepreneurs and having a supportive community of makers. Overall it has transformed my business in ways I never could have imagined.”
Ruthie Youngman LoveYourBling July 9, 2016
“Being part of this exclusive group of artisans has been one of the best business decisions I ever made. The Artisan Group opened doors for us that we could never even dream about. I highly recommend applying to The Artisan Group to take your business to the next level… the sky is the limit.”
Bethany Schuelke Hope Anchored Designs July 7, 2016
“The day I received my acceptance email from The Artisan Group was probably the most pivotal day for my business. With my jewelry business being just six months old at the time, I was still learning the ropes of marketing, social media and promoting my products. TAG members (not only talented but extremely business savvy) were amazingly helpful in guiding, encouraging and challenging me to take my business to the next level. Not one to sit back and watch, I jumped in right away and participated in gifting my bracelets at the 2013 GBK Oscars Gift Lounge, something I would not have been able to do or afford if not for TAG. A month after that gifting, I experienced my highest month of sales (as well as website views) since I began the business. Every gifting opportunity I have participated in has been well organized and professional with every detail attended to. I’ve been so impressed with the tireless efforts of our founder, Valerie Guerrero. She really wants each and every one of us to succeed. My products are now in the hands of many top Hollywood celebrities which is so exciting. I’m honored to be a member of The Artisan Group!”
Cindy Kassebaum Rock & Hardware Jewelry July 7, 2016
“Community, support, inspiration, opportunity, guidance and leadership – if those are the qualities that appeal to you in an organization then The Artisan Group could be the perfect fit.
Have you ever met anyone that you consider a force of nature? I have, and her name is Valerie Guerrero. She is the extremely talented, professional, generous, organized leader of The Artisan Group (TAG). She is someone that made her vision into reality; and works incredibly hard to provide amazing and incredible opportunities for the members of the group.
Kath’s Elegant Accessories, LLC’s participation in The Artisan Group started in 2011. I have learned so much and am still learning from the community members as well as the leadership. The community spirit is a generous one full of talented artisans who all have a passion for things handmade.
When I first became a member of TAG, I never imagined that my designs would be on display at the 2012 and 2013 GBK Gift Lounge for the Golden Globes (with amazing celebrity photographs of Shaillene Woodley, Natasha Henstridge, Janina Gavankar and Shanola Hampton).
Or . . . that I would have the opportunity to contribute to charitable events to support animals, breast cancer and The National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society.
Or . . . that my business cards and information would be included at so many events such as Earth Day, Mother’s Day, GBK’s Cannes Film Festival Celebrity Gifting Event and the Country Music Association Awards (CMAs), to name a few.
Or . . . that I could share my designs with celebrities such as Stephanie Drapeau, Alison Sweeney, Renee Zellweger, Brandi Glanville, Paula Abdul, Nia Peeples, Nicole Richie, Jenny McCarthy, Rachael Ray, Cari Cucksey and Hilary Duff.
Or . . . that a design would be included in a 2015 Hallmark Channel movie directed by Mariah Carey called A Christmas Melody.
Or . . . that a bracelet I designed would be worn on The Vampire Diaries television show.
Or . . . have a photo of one of my designs included in an article featuring The Artisan Group in Handmade Business Magazine.
Or . . . the next amazing thing that Valerie has in store for the organization. I only know that there isn’t another group like this one, anywhere – and I am very grateful to be a member of The Artisan Group.”
Kathy Messick Kath’s Elegant Accessories, LLC July 6, 2016