(bright music) - [Announcer] Funding for "Working Capital" is provided by the Friends of KTWU and GO Topeka.

- Welcome back to "Working Capital."

Creativity flows from our hearts and minds through our hands to create many different types of art.

From a jumble of words, sketches on a pad, or a lump of clay, an artistic seed can be planted at any age.

Today, we're potting creativity.

(vibrant rock music) Curating children's imaginations, Paper June is not just a children's bookstore, it provides an expressive outlet for all types of artistic talents.

Kids' interest and skills are encouraged and nurtured through reading, writing, art, and play.

Classes, camps, and clubs round out the wonderful offerings for children of all ages.

Here to tell us a little more about Paper June's story is Angie Grau.

Thanks for joining us, Angie.

- Thank you for having me.

- So I know you started off in the corporate world.

- (chuckles) Yes.

- So tell me about this detour and how this idea for Paper June came about.

- Yes, so prior to opening Paper June, I worked at Advisors Excel.

My background, as you know, is in advertising and marketing.

So I worked at an agency, and then did some in-house in Manhattan at CivicPlus before joining AE.

And it was a great experience.

Got to work with a lot of great people.

And some of those people actually are who helped me kind of launch the business.

- Really?

- So yeah.

I would talk to one of my really good friends, and actually, the designer of our logo, Sara Batman.

She's wonderful.

She and I would talk a lot about our kids at home and the things that we wished we had in the community.

And so when my oldest, who's now 10 1/2, when she was really little, it was pretty obvious, she's just artistic.

She's not a toy kid.

She wants to dance and sing and do artsy types of things.

But at that point, especially as a working mom, there were not a lot of options in town.

The things that we did have available were happening during the day or at times when I wasn't able to take her to those activities.

And so we would talk a lot about that.

Her being a graphic designer, that's, obviously, art is an interest for her as a parent, and then also for me.

And I'd talk about like, "Wouldn't it be so cool if we had a kid's bookstore?

Wouldn't it be so cool if we had an art studio like this?"

There's an art studio in Canada, actually, called Collage Collage, that she and I really both love.

And she would read about it in some of her graphic designer magazines.

- Mm-hmm.

- And we would just talk about how it would be so great to have stuff like that in the community.

And she would tell me all the time like, "You should do that.

You should do that."

"Absolutely not."

I'm super risk-averse.

I did not want anything to do with that.

But as time went on and I had more kids, and I just really kept coming back to how cool it would be to do that.

And she kept there, like in the back of my head and in person, "Just saying, hey, you should look into it.

You should try it.

See what would happen."

And so the sparks just kind of grew over time.

And on maternity leave with my youngest, with my third kiddo, I then took some time to focus on kinda working on a business plan, talking to other small businesses in our community, and researching similar children's bookstores and children's art studios around the country.

And then shortly after I went back to work, I started Paper June as a pop-up shop inside of a children's boutique in town.

- How did that help you feel out the community and how they would receive Paper June?

- So at first, while we were doing the pop-up shop, I couldn't do the art side.

So we were really focused on the book side of things to just see if there was an interest.

So we could kind of low-level start doing some marketing, some Facebook and Instagram stuff, promoting the business, promoting Paper June, the idea of it.

And then we got the benefit of being able to be immediately in front of customers who have children and are interested in purchasing for kids, so grandparents as well as parents.

And I really just wanted to gauge that level of interest.

And I was able to cover all of my expenses of the pop-up shop and then continue building and bringing in new inventory and additional inventory.

And we did that for about eight months before I finally was able to go to my husband and say like, "Hey, look."

- It's working.

- "It's working, and I really think that we could take it to the next level," which in my mind, I always knew I wanted to add in the creative component and have that addition of an art studio for kids as well.

So we started the pop-up shop in October of 2018, and then we opened Paper June where it's at now in NOTO in June of 2019, so yeah.

- Wow.

So where all did you try the pop-up shop at?

- We just were at, it was Ethan + Anna Children's Boutique and it closed.

- Okay.

- It's not open anymore.

Kim and Aimee, the owners, were amazing.

I had never met them.

I was just some random woman carrying this like newborn baby, like, "Hey, I have this idea."

And I just kind of spilled my guts to them about what I wanted to do.

And they were so supportive and so excited for me.

Two months later, they took me to market with them in Dallas, so I learned so much from them, and it gave me a great opportunity, because my background is not in retail, to kind of learn the ropes, get some information from them, and test things out and learn, even though I still make a million mistakes all the time.

But it gave me some nice groundwork so that I felt more confident and I wasn't just blindly going into this completely new business.

- Before you get the big store space, I mean, for the pop-up, you have limited space then.

- Yes.

- So how do you curate that selection of books to start with?

How do you pick and choose?

- Yeah.

So I am really very picky about the types of books that I have.

We've adjusted a little bit just based on interest in the community, but in the very beginnings, I was very anti-franchise books.

I didn't want people to come to Paper June and find stuff that they could just pick up at Dillons or even at Target.

I mean, we're gonna have a little bit of overlap- - Yeah.

- But I really wanted to provide a unique experience.

And I do wanna have that focus on creativity but also on inclusivity and on just being representative of all walks of life is a really big thing for me.

It's really important.

I feel responsible.

That's part of what I get to do and I should be doing for our community is that anyone, no matter who they are, can come into Paper June and find something that represents them.

That's really important.

So I make sure to include that, for sure.

But then you just learn as you go along.

Like farms, absolutely.

Anything farm is gonna sell.

Dinosaurs, yes, unicorn.

There are the trends that you kinda pick up on.

- [Jay] Yeah.

- But I'm also very picky about illustration.

I myself would not say I'm an artist by any means, but I've spent my adult life around creatives.

And so I'm just really picky about artwork, especially with picture books, wanting to make sure that they are, have a quality story, but that they also have quality illustration to go with them.

- That's awesome.

It's time for a short break.

When we return, we'll learn more about the next chapter of Paper June.

We'll be right back.

(mellow music) Welcome back.

Okay, Angie, we found out how you started learning about the buying, the curating, but now, we're ready for the storefront.

- [Angie] Yes.

- How did this come to be?

How did you find the perfect spot for this?

And what all went into finding that?

- So I started initially... At that point, I knew that Ethan + Anna was going to be closing, but I also knew that that space was gonna be limited and I wanted something bigger so I could incorporate the creative side, the art side.

So I kinda talked with Brookfield, 'cause ideally, it would've been easier (chuckles) to stay.

- [Jay] Mm-hmm.

- But it just wasn't gonna work out for what I needed.

And we started out of pocket, my husband and I.

And so that also put some limitations (laughs) on- - Yeah.

- Where we're gonna go and what we can afford.

And a few of my friends at Advisors Excel knew kind of about the store and what I was working on, what I was doing.

And my friend, Megan, actually reached out because her aunt actually owns the building that I'm now in.

- Oh, cool.

- Yes.

- Okay.

- And she knew that her aunt was gonna be closing her shop that was on the main floor and was gonna be looking for someone to move into it.

So I went in, I looked at the space, reached out to Carolyn about it to see kind of what that relationship would look like, what she was looking for, and it honestly just, it was just kind of like that perfect combination of knowing Megan and then having the connection to Carolyn.

And being in NOTO, I was really excited about as well, it being the arts district and my wanting to include the creative space for kids, I felt like it just made sense, but it also made financial sense as well.

So yeah, I mean, it kinda happened pretty quickly after that.

- Well, I know that at NOTO, they don't own the buildings there, the organization.

- No, yeah.

- But do they help tenants a lot down there?

Do they help get business down to you guys?

- So the NOTO Arts Center, it does own a few areas, a few spaces that are down there, but they are not responsible for the day-to-day of us business owners who are there.

They do a lot of programming, and that programming, like hosting the First Fridays and having events that are actually across the street.

When I opened, the Red Bud Park was not there.

They had started doing some work on it, so that was kinda fun to watch.

But by having that across the street, and then they have started doing music and having events there, and of course, that's gonna bring in people to the community.

But it is definitely not their responsibility to make sure that we're getting stuff done and have people in the store.

- Yup, they're just kinda setting the mood for the neighborhood, which helps everyone there.

- Yes, yeah.

Yes, exactly.

- Okay, so we start with books.

- [Angie] Yes.

- But as you talked about, it's really about creativity in general there.

- Yes.

- So how did you grow?

What was the first new thing there besides books?

- So the store is actually, that's one of the things that I really liked about it is it already had a partial wall basically in the middle of the storefront.

So I loved that 'cause I didn't have to pay to build one and I really needed that because I still wanted to incorporate the books as well as having the art studio.

So we started getting in all of our shelving units, our displays and things, to put in the front, which is really funny 'cause it is like nothing like what it looks like now, really.

- Yeah.

- 'Cause we've expanded and been able to, been blessed enough to bring in more books and things.

But we knew the front half was gonna be retail and then the back half was gonna be the art studio.

So we didn't have to do a lot of prep work for the space.

We were able to get some paint and get in some tables, and shelves, and art supplies, and things.

And we were able to start...

I don't remember how early on we started doing the art classes, but it was pretty soon, kind of shortly after we opened, where we started offering some evening art classes for the kids.

- What are some of the classes you offer?

And what's the most popular right now?

- [Angie] Yes.

- I've seen like anime drawing classes- - Yes.

- And cartoon classes.

- Yeah, so Dane Shobe, a local artist who's phenomenal, he actually has been working on a magazine that he got a grant for- - He was actually on our show, talking about that magazine.

- Was he?

Oh, yay, good.

- Yes, yes.

- So Dane actually teaches some art classes for us.

He does Comic Book Illustration classes and the anime, Drawing Anime for Beginners classes.

And so far, Comic Book Illustration has been by far one of the most popular.

And the nice thing about it is, even my daughter who is not interested in superheroes at all, she can still learn from him and use that in her own artwork.

So she learned a lot about facial expressions and body proportions and all of that.

And so she was able to then implement it within her own style of art.

And that's really what I tell families.

You don't have to be super into the superheroes to learn and grow as an artist.

- Just getting engaged with the style.

- Yeah.

- And then making it fit for your own dreams.

- Yeah, yes.

There are tons of artists who go to school, they're gonna study like fine art and they're gonna have to learn realism, but that's a lot of times not the path that they're gonna take, but it helps them become better artists.

And Dane's class is similar in that same sense.

No matter what you kind of study, it's all going to help you become even better.

So his classes are by far the most popular.

And then starting in May, we have an Inspiring Artists class that's gonna be on Wednesdays, and it's process-based.

So it's not technical.

It's really about the act of creating and less about the finished product.

So in that, each week, we will learn about a different artist, and then they create inspired artwork, but it won't necessarily be in the same medium that that art is created in.

It's really about getting kids to experiment, and try new things, and problem-solve, and just get creative using different types of materials.

And in May, we're focusing on Asian American and Pacific Islander artists.

- Oh, very cool.

- So yeah, I'm excited about that one.

- That's cool.

- So we'll see.

That's new, so we'll see how the community responds to it.

But I love the idea of introducing kids to different types of art at a very young age, and then for them to just kind of be inspired with it and take it in their own direction.

- We got about 30 seconds left, but with these classes and all, you've now led up to, just so people know, this summer.

- Yes.

- You have some summer camps- - We do.

- And I think still have a little bit of space left?

- We do, yes, yeah.

We have half-day summer camps.

We call them Creative Camps because we do emphasize reading and writing as well as the art and play.

All of that works into those four-hour blocks of time.

And there's definitely a lot of art involved, but it's just about getting the kids creative during that time away from school.

- Keep 'em engaged.

- [Angie] Yes.

- That's awesome.

Well, thank you Angie.

We can't wait to hear more about Paper June in the future.

- [Angie] Thank you.

- It's time for another short break.

When we return, we'll throw down and get fired up.

We'll be right back.

(mellow music) Don't just sit there like a lump of clay.

Our next business is about to get you fired up.

For the last five years, Fire Me Up Ceramics has been spinning beautiful pieces of art out of their studio in NOTO.

Just starting out or a seasoned thrower, they have space for you.

Here to help shape our introduction to pottery is Monette Mark and Damien Lassiter.

Welcome to "Working Capital."

- Hi, thank you for having us.

- So the first time I really noticed this Fire Me Up Ceramics- - Mm-hmm.

- You had your garage door open.

I saw lots of people in there working.

Fantastic space.

- [Monette] Mm-hmm.

- But tell me where did this idea come from?

- Well, at NOTO, actually, the idea of NOTO starting and all the art coming in.

And I wasn't the first one by any means.

There were many people there before me.

But seeing that was very inspiring, so, and I kept getting calls.

I was teaching at the art department here at Washburn, and I would get calls all the time, "Hey, I have a kid," or, "Can I take a," from adults, "Can I take a class but not take it as a for credit?"

- [Jay] Mm-hmm.

- And so there were all these people who were interested.

- There's a big need in the community.

- There was a huge need.

And there was drawing and painting and things like that, but ceramics has its own challenges with kilns, and safety, and all the equipment, all the equipment that you need to be able to do it and do it right.

- So a space like this, kind of a little enclave is easier 'cause you have a lot of artists kinda sharing the cost of the big equipment.

- Yes, yeah, absolutely.

- [Jay] Makes it a little more attainable for local artists then?

- Yeah, it's kind of like, I mean, even though we're not a co-op, it's kinda like a co-op.

- [Jay] Mm-hmm.

- Because we have over 70 people who work out of the studio.

- [Jay] Oh, wow.

- Yeah.

- Wow.

- Yeah, we have 15 studio spaces that are like six-by-six with shelves and places to keep their stuff.

And then we have these smaller shelves that people that aren't able to come in so often, they're able to come in and work on their own pace.

Then we also have classes.

And our classes, we have shelving for them.

We have lots of shelves, lots of shelves.

(Jay chuckles) 'Cause we have tons of stuff to put on them, right?

- Mm-hmm.

- People are making things all the time.

But the smaller shelves, we have over 40 of those for people to rent.

And some people share spaces, so.

- With that many artists involved there, what hours of the day are people there working?

- Ah, that is a great question.

24/7.

- [Jay] 24/7 access?

- Yes.

- That's fantastic.

- Everyone who rents from us can get in whenever they want.

If they wake up at five in the morning with creative juices flowing and wanna go in and throw something or handbuild something, then they can go in whenever they want.

- Damien- - Same thing for people who take classes.

Sorry.

- Oh, that's all right.

That's all right.

(Monette laughs) This concept, I mean, when did you get involved?

And what really struck you that, yeah, this is gonna work?

- I've been with them for about a year.

I started by taking a class, got my key, and just never left.

- (chuckles) Mm-hmm.

- Eventually, she finally decided to give me a job because I just wouldn't leave.

(Monette chuckles) It is such an amazing community of artists coming together, again, sharing ideas, kinda riffing off each other.

Everybody's so helpful.

I know, when I was first beginning, that they were very helpful with different techniques and ideas on how to do things, that it's really a great community that Monette has put together for us to be creative.

- Talk a little bit of the teaching side.

- Oh, teaching- - I mean, is it more rewarding or less rewarding than what you did here at Washburn?

- Oh, it's- - Totally different ball game?

- No, it's...

It's really just more all-encompassing 'cause our age range is from six to 90.

- Oh.

- Yeah.

- So kinda the same as Paper June.

Well, they may go a little younger, but yeah, yeah.

- Right, maybe a little.

But yeah, we have a huge age range, so it's not just... Well, Washburn is cool.

Washburn has a lot of college-age students, have a lot of non-traditional students, and then the over 60 group as well, which is really a fantastic thing that Washburn does- - Washburn.

- For the community, too.

And actually, when I started off, I wanted to be able to let the over 60, 'cause at that time, we were at capacity here at Washburn.

- Mm-hmm.

- And we had to start turning people away.

And then when I started the studio, I wanted to make sure that we were able to, well, I mean we only can hold so many people, but we were able to encompass that age group as well and have space for them, for the overflow.

- Mm-hmm.

(Monette laughs) - Well, 70 artists there with all these classes.

- Mm-hmm.

- How much more room do you have for artists?

I mean, is there 30?

- Oh, we don't.

Unfortunately- - You're pretty much... You're at capacity right now.

- We have a waiting list now unfortunately.

- Wow.

- I mean, 'cause there's so many people.

- A good problem to have.

- It's a good problem to have, but we would love to have space for everyone.

But- - Does that put any ideas in your head for an expansion at any point?

- Oh, no, no, no, no.

- No, you're like, we got what we can handle.

That's someone else's... (Monette sighs) - Yeah.

(laughs) It's a lot.

There's just... With everyone there and the space we have, I mean, we have on our first floor 3,750 square feet, which is full.

- Doesn't seem like that when you drive by.

- No, it doesn't.

You come in and it is full.

We are full.

- Mm-hmm.

- So, but that's great because everybody is making things.

You've got people making things every day, all day.

He never left.

I mean, seriously.

- [Damien] Yeah.

- Got caught in the back.

(Damien chuckles) - Yeah, I mean- - Yeah, yeah.

- And that's not just...

I mean, my other manager, Angela, she was the same way when she came in four years ago.

She just came in, never left.

And just so that's how I ended up with my managers is that.

And they do- (Damien chuckles) - Passionate people.

- Yeah, and what they do is they help, I mean, from everything to...

When you're a small business owner, you have to do everything from janitorial to maintenance to your bookwork, and advertising, and loading and unloading kilns, and making glazes, and there's a lot of day-to-day.

- Wow.

Wow.

- Yeah.

But the creativity is fun and the classes are fun 'cause we have classes, in the summer especially.

We have two times during the day on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Or sorry.

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

I'm doing the college thing again.

(Jay laughs) Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.

So we have beginners classes Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from two to four, and then again from six to eight.

And then on Thursdays, we have handbuilding classes.

On Fridays, we have events.

And on weekends, we have specially scheduled things for parties or corporate team-building events and things like that, too.

- Oh.

That's cool.

- So- - So you've got quick introductory class for your 15 coworkers and you or- - Yeah.

Yeah.

- Or a bachelorette party.

- [Monette] We've had all of the above.

- Wow.

- Yeah.

- That's awesome.

- We've had everything from baby showers to corporate events to, yeah- - Okay.

- Bachelor parties.

- All right.

- Or bachelorette parties.

- After another short break, we'll find out what's spinning on the wheel for the future of Fire Me Up Ceramics.

We'll be right back.

(mellow music) Welcome back to "Working Capital."

I'm really interested in these classes you're teaching, but how does that work?

When you have 70 people already involved there, how do your classes fit in?

What are the class sizes?

And how easy is it to get into a class?

- The class sizes are usually 10 people.

- [Jay] Okay.

- We have 11, well, technically, 12 wheels, but we like to keep it small.

- [Jay] Mm-hmm.

- More one-on-one interaction there.

And our class times are usually in two-hour blocks.

So we don't wanna wear you out, (chuckles) but we wanna give you enough time to get some good instruction and then come in and practice, practice, practice.

- Now you say there's- - So.

- 12 wheels there.

- Mm-hmm.

- So while there's classes going on, can the other artists work?

Or they have personal wheels there, also?

- Both.

- [Jay] Okay.

- Yeah, some of the artists have brought their own wheels.

- So if you're renting the bigger space- - Uh-huh.

- You have space for that.

If you're just getting a shelf, you're gonna use the the communal- - Right.

- Okay.

- Yeah, exactly.

- [Jay] All right.

- So... And then people, since they have such wide hours, 24 hours, that they can come in, they know when the classes are and they know how many wheels are available, and maybe they're glazing or maybe they're doing some decorative work instead of actually throwing during those two hours or four hours a day.

- Waiting list sometimes on those classes, also, just like the regular spaces?

- It's first come, first serve on the classes.

- How far in advance, if you have a party or a corporate event you wanna bring in, how far in advance do they need to talk to you?

- Oh, a couple weeks is usually good.

- That's not bad.

- But, but- - [Jay] Farther out, the better.

- Further out, the better, so.

- Let's talk a little bit more about the community there again.

- Okay.

- You've been there about a year, you say, and you just never left.

- Yes, yeah.

- So I mean, there's something there besides just being able to throw.

So I mean, what really, when you walked in that door, what caught your eye?

What caught your feelings there?

- It's just the atmosphere.

And that, to me, for any creative endeavor is really creating that atmosphere in which through creativity can flow and that welcoming atmosphere, like that, it was really the people that kept me there.

It wasn't so much...

I love the process.

I'm very passionate about the process.

To me, clay is deep in our DNA.

It was a huge leap forward for societies when they did find...

There's whole societies we just don't even know of other than the fact that we've found their pottery.

So I think it's deep in our DNA.

So there was something to that, just getting in there and doing that.

But then the people there, though, is what kept me there.

It was just the atmosphere that Monette has helped cultivate there to create just this sharing of ideas and a place where you can be creative.

It's something special there.

(laughs) - We have a special group of people.

- Yeah.

- Yeah, I couldn't have just walked down the street and picked out people that were so giving.

- So all this beautiful artwork coming out of there- - Mm-hmm?

- Do you ever have any shows?

Do you have your own gallery there?

- That's a very good question.

We definitely do.

It's called the Sage Crossing Gallery.

It's named for the area.

The building that we're in is actually 140 years old.

- Oh, a grocery store?

Or what was the- - Well, originally- - Or a market team?

- Originally, it was a creamery.

- Okay.

- It was the Topeka Creamery.

They made butter.

And then after the Topeka Creamery, it was the Sage Grocery Store Number Two.

- Okay, that's, yeah.

- Yeah.

- All right.

- And crossing.

We're the crossing point.

We have the railroad, we have the river, you know?

- Mm-hmm.

- Yeah, so.

So the Sage Crossing Gallery.

And we have new artists in every month.

- [Jay] That's pretty cool.

- Yeah.

Not ceramic, usually, by the way.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- Really?

- Yeah, we have a lot of painters.

- Oh, that's kinda cool.

- We have fiber artists.

We have, yeah.

I like to mix it up, keep the gallery a little bit different so it's not just- - Same thing.

- You can come in and- - [Jay] Yeah, so you- - So you just- - You wanna come in every month when there's a new showing.

- [Monette] Yeah, exactly.

- That's awesome.

Does anyone actually sell their...

Does anyone sell their wares out of there?

Or where can we find some of these locally thrown goods?

- Yeah, we have a whole wall of shelves that are kind of overflowing, actually, (laughs) from all of the things that people have made that they would like to sell because our people make a lot of work and they're all pretty talented, actually.

So you get a wide variety of sculptural and utilitarian pieces, so everything from a cup to something that you might look at and go, hey, that's just really cool-looking, so.

- Have you ever had any like just surprise mess-ups that turn into something beautiful?

We've talked about other artists who, all of a sudden, someone grabs something the wrong way, it squishes it, but that's the one that sells because it's totally different.

- All the time.

That happens.

I mean, the clay is so malleable and it's very easy to be clumsy with, (laughs) especially me.

- Yeah.

- I have a tendency to hit things on the edge.

(Jay laughs) - Yeah, yeah, yeah.

(Monette laughs) - Especially while they're wet and very dentable.

And so when things like that happen, sometimes you have to just make lemonade and- - Magic happens.

- And beat that cup into submission with a piece of wood or something that's gonna give it a beautiful texture.

And sometimes that's better than it being super smooth.

- That's true.

Well, that's a wrap for tonight's show.

I'd like to thank Angie Grau from Paper June, along with Monette Mark and Damien Lassiter from Fire Me Up Ceramics for joining us today.

As always, if you know of any interesting businesses or business topics, we wanna hear from you.

So give us a call, drop us an email, or send us a letter.

See you next time and thanks for watching.

It's all about business, and you've been watching "Working Capital."

(mellow music) - [Announcer] Funding for "Working Capital" is provided by the Friends of KTWU and GO Topeka.