The idea is simple: artists upload high-resolution images of their works. A fulfillment center prints editions in a variety of sizes on a variety of materials, from wall-mounted canvases and acrylic panels to yoga mats and tank tops, and ships them directly to consumers. AI-powered statistical analysis tracks potential buyers, and a marketing calendar plans a social media strategy. A bespectacled salesperson outlines one artist's annual income: more than $80,000. Within a few hours, he told me I could sign up, pay $1,699 up front for the basic Bronze membership level, add $50 a month for a web store, and they'd build me a site. And maybe I'd start raking in the cash.
Art Storefront was founded in 2013 and currently has 14,000 members. Its CEO and founder, Nick Friend, is a graduate of the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business. He came up with the idea for Art Storefront after founding a company that manufactured fine art paper and canvas.
The Art Storefronts website states, “Selling art? It's all about marketing.”
From the moment I handed over my contact information, I endured their hard sales pitch: emails and text messages teased one of the few remaining slots in their latest exclusive promotion, while others promised further walk-throughs with Art Storefronts' satisfied customers.
“I've noticed a lot of ads and videos lately: Hey, artist, we'll help you make $500,000, etc. That's the promise all the time,” says Karen Hutton, a master landscape and travel photographer. She sells multiple pieces on her Art Storefront website, but that's just one part of a successful career. “I have a vision of what I want my business to be,” she told me. “Their business education doesn't align with that, and that's OK because it aligns with what other people think.”
According to a testosterone-filled 2017 episode of the Art Storefronts podcast (which has been removed from the website in recent weeks), ideally, prospective members are encouraged to pass the so-called “Is my art no good?” test by selling their work offline to strangers.
A friend told me that 20 percent of new members have never sold art before. Art Storefronts seemed ready to take my money. One marketing email said my art had “accidentally” caught the eye of a rep. But I hadn't shown my art to anyone.
