Rob & Barbie Jones The Wholesale Showman

From his childhood, Rob was an artist. In fact, he would rather draw than do anything, including his homework. So it was no surprise upon high school graduation that his lackluster academic career meant no scholarships for art school. He decided to go into the Navy, thinking that he could go to art school on the GI Bill when he got out.

Imagine his shock when, after taking the Navy’s aptitude tests, they told him he could write his ticket in areas such as nuclear field technician or electronics! He chose to go into advanced electronics, which obligated him to a sixyear stint in the service. Little did he know that the education he received would play an essential part in realizing his future artistic dreams.

Throughout his time in the Navy, he kept up his art. He was working with pen and ink drawings, even taking a booth in a San Diego market to sell his wares. It didn’t go well. People loved his work, but it wasn’t enough to build a career.

Once he left the service, he began to express his art by working with wood. His father gave him a Dremel, and he began making art pieces out of wood. Rob found it a very challenging and satisfying medium to create from.

He also returned to Thomaston, Maine, a town just outside of Camden, and all part of coastal New England communities that tourists descend upon come the summer. Rob knowing that tourists want to take something nautical and reminiscent of Maine home with them, devised a plan. He had a favorite store in Camden, Once a Tree, and there he took his first handcrafted wood pieces - seashells - to the owner, Bernice, and asked if she would carry his products in her shop. Bernice, taken with his shells, immediately became a fan of Rob’s work, eventually becoming a mentor to him and his burgeoning business.

In May 2010, he designed his first bowl, inspired by a wind twirler. He made the first one with a skilled saw and then had twelve 9” bowls made by a manufacturing company an hour away from him to create the bowls with a laser.

Rob signed up to sell them at a Boats, Homes, and Harbors show in August of that year and sold all 12 of them before the show even officially opened! This was a completely different experience than he had had with his drawings, and he was encouraged. Riding high on the successful debut, he took one of his bowls to Bernice. She had never seen a piece like it and was more convinced than ever that Rob needed to take things to the next level.

Bernice urged him to go to the Philadelphia gift show, explaining that he would meet buyers from all over looking to buy inventory for their stores there. He immediately researched and found the event, signed up and exhibited for the first time. The booth cost $2,000, and he wrote orders for $4,000 worth of product. Rob was thrilled! A great success!

A short time later, Rob stopped by to see Bernice at Once a Tree. She immediately queried him about going to the gift show. Of course, he explained he had gone, and it was pretty successful... except she said the show wasn’t for another three weeks. He had gone to the wrong show.

“I had spent all my money going to this other one,” Rob explained, “There were no funds for going to the show she had suggested.” But she believed in him and knew he would do well at the show, so she gave him her credit card and said to go, use the card to pay for everything, and that they would settle up afterward. Bernice was a mentor who put her money where her mouth was!

Rob did the Philadelphia show she had initially suggested and returned with $25,000 of orders. He was a sensation with his wooden art, and while it took some time to completely let go of his other income stream, he has been full-time with his company, Baltic by Design, since 2012.

The business model is now wholesale-driven. Once he found the gift shows, his business started to thrive. Today he has over 400 wholesale clients, and revenues flow from repeat orders Buyers now proactively contact them to place another order. Baltic by Design delivers solid products that sell, excellent service, and timely deliveries that keep shop owners returning for more. Later in this article, you will find a pullout section all about gift shows: where to find them, how to display at them, and more.

Always with an eye on expansion, two years ago, Rob gave Barbie a unique birthday gift – their shop, Wooden Alchemy, today to be found in the heart of Camden, Maine. The wonderful Once a Tree store is still there, although Bernice is no longer involved, having sold the business. The two businesses are great supporters of each other.

To enter their shop is to be welcomed into an experience. Everywhere you look are beautifully crafted laser products; ornaments, coasters, candle holders, watermap cribbage boards, and of course, so many variations of Rob’s amazing bowls!

The displays are as organic as the products, a feast for the eyes.