Rockford cousins found art apparel company to help artists during the COVID-19 pandemic
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WIFR) - With art shows being canceled to avoid the spread of COVID-19, one pair of cousins originally from Rockford teamed up and created an online company where artists from all over the world can sell their pieces in a unique and different way.
Guilford grad John Kratz is the COO of Museema, a platform where artists turn their works into unique apparel. He co-founded the company with his cousin, Matt, who is also a Guilford grad. The idea became reality in 2020 after the cousins noticed the local art scene in downtown Rockford was big.
Matt Papke says, “We’re not artists but we’re interested in art. It’s very cool. We both live in small apartments in big cities, even if you do have the money to purchase an original for hundreds or maybe thousands of dollars, how many walls do you have? You’re the only one seeing that, there’s not a pride aspect of it.”
The cousins now live in Chicago and just outside of Boston and run the business remotely. They had one simple goal in mind, to help artists support themselves, by broadening their reach during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kratz says, “Every Museeuma piece of apparel is branded with Museema times the artists name. It’s a unique thing we feel really calls out that hey this is art. This is a unique piece that someone created, it’s not just a graphic tee you can get anywhere.”
Matt and John say their business stands out from the competition because they compensate their clients at higher rates while creating unique sales plans. Papke says, “They make $15 per sale. It’s important for us to pay that well. We don’t want this to be some side gig where someone is making a few bucks a sale, that’s not what we’re trying to do here.”
While their website draws clients from all around the world, the pair says Rockford has lots of potential and hopes to offer more Forest City flavor.
“Within Rockford, you go to any of the high schools or any of the colleges and you walk through the halls and there’s so much cool art. I would love to spread the word to Rockford as much as possible,” Papke says.
“We are very lucky in Rockford to have such a diverse community and for example, being able to go to Rockford Roasting Company, having a high school like Auburn that has a cap program where there are just a lot of artists. I think it’s very unique to Rockford,” says Kratz.
Museema currently has more than 60 clients from all around the world. You can purchase items on their website here.
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