Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Abbott.
Hi Mary, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My husband, Kevin, made me a pair of earrings when we were dating, over 30 years ago. He drew a sun and a moon and shrunk them down to earring size on a photo copier, mounted them on a couple pieces of paper to make them thicker, painted them with a toothpick, and covered them in a clear shellac. I loved them, of course, but our friends did too and started asking for him to make them earrings and suggesting other mismatched designs he might create. As he started making more, he looked for ways to encorporate recycled materials into the process which is how he landed on using cereal boxes. What started as a diningroom table side-hustle has grown to a business that employs a dozen people and sends earrings out to state parks, national parks, science museums, nature centers and specialty stores across the US and Canada.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
As for most people and businesses, Covid was a real challenge for us. Most of our wholesale accounts are state/national parks, wildlife refuges, and similar locations. Even when the parks themselves began to reopen, the gift shops remained closed. However, people were flocking to their local bird stores to buy feeders, seed, and binoculars. We had a handful of Wild Birds Unlimited stores among our wholesale customers so we sent samples to every single WBU shop across the US and Canada. They really kept us afloat for many months and continue to be among our best customers.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Kevin’s background is in wildlife biology and while he hasn’t worked in that field since his 20’s, his art continues to reflect his love for the natural world. In addition to designing most of the earrings and display cards that they come on (we occasionally have guest artists do some designs) he also creates sculptures using the bits of cereal boxes leftover from making the earrings. He blends them up with water to create a clay-like paper pulp and uses it to create any manner of scultpure, both small and large. Most recently he created a life-size cave-scape, complete with stalagtites, stalagmites, and pillars, that was displayed in a local shop window. On Saturday afternoons you can visit Kevin at Titan Market in Bellefonte to see some of his artwork, ride the blender bike to create paper pulp, and try your hand at making your own creation!
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
Neither Kevin nor I have a business background and if you had told me, back when he made me that first pair of earrings, that this would become a full-time occupation for both of us and a team of others, I wouldn’t have believed you! I think our success can be credited to a great idea, hard work, wonderful employees, and a good bit of luck!
Pricing:
- In our studio, our earrings sell for $17/pair and we offer a buy-3-get-1-free special.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jabebo.com
- Instagram: jabebostudio
- Facebook: Jabebo Studio
