La Mantia Gallery

Owner Names: Robert Bluver and James Lamantia

Inside the idyllic seaside village of Northport, NY sits a nationally respected fine art gallery called LaMantia Gallery. Robert Bluver and James LaMantia are the partners that run this retail establishment which hosts art shows along with wine and cheese parings. All who visit the gallery are treated to thorough knowledge of the featured artists, design skills that are second to none, and first class service that – given the ambience and artists’ talent level – those who come in are not one bit surprised to receive.

After 21 years in business, LaMantia Gallery’s owners have realized that they have a new desire to become a wholesaler of art, representing artists and selling their works to other galleries, but they need to work through a few challenges first. When I asked Robert about his plan to achieve his goals, he told me that though he had established it “in his head”, he had not really formulated it on paper -- and lamented that he did not exactly have all the details worked out quite yet. Adding another layer of difficulty is the fact that LaMantia also has four lines of business already: retail, corporate, residential and framing services, which many of their existing clients don’t realize.

Robert also informed us that he and his partner needed to hire a gallery manager to replace them in the showroom. They realize that once they are successful wholesalers, their time will be spent on the road, not just in the gallery. This is a challenge for the two partners, who considered the showroom not only to be their baby, but presently represents the bulk of their income. It was unsurprisingly causing them stress -- and discomfort – to consider bringing another player in to deal with long time clients and repeat buyers.

LaMantia Gallery -- like many small businesses -- has a well-trained but small staff. Jim and Robert spend a tremendous amount of time on billing, paperwork and all the other daily chores that being shop owners entail. Keeping all of these moving parts running at an optimal level can be even more difficult when you are a small organization.

I recommended that the gallery duo focus on creating a written plan for their future that would provide a blueprint or roadmap for their expanded success. Writing that plan down, reviewing and referencing it, adjusting it and reworking it is a never-ending process. Having a starting point will help the two men formulate their ideas and better achieve their goals.

The gallery needs to enhance their communication with their clients to make them aware of the other valuable services LaMantia offers. Jim and Robert have to decide what their greatest opportunity may be within the various lines of business they offer. For example, they see growth potential and high profit margin in the wholesale market, they should spend more time cultivating that segment of the business while being careful not to neglect their other lines of business offerings.

Jim and Robert will need to spend more time away from the gallery as LaMantia grows in the wholesale arena. As a result, they’ll need to hire someone to replace them in the showroom. We recommended writing down all the tasks and procedures they currently handle in order to efficiently organize their duties to better train their replacement. They must also provide a high level of support to the new gallery manager to enable the new employee to not only succeed but excel in that role.

In the months have passed, Robert and James have written their business plan, been interviewing for a gallery manager, signed their first artist for wholesale distribution and are taking the right steps to grow their organization.

Summary:

• Having a plan “in your head” won’t help you act upon it. Establish a written plan for success to act as your blueprint or roadmap to prosperity.
• Always remain on message to your clientele to assure maximum sales in each category.
• Document all tasks and training guidelines for every member of your staff -- especially managers and key personnel -- to ensure that there is continuity on your business.