Drumming Up New Business

May 1, 2008

Jazz legend Louie Bellson made an appearance to promote his new CD at an EmbroidMe in Las Vegas. Bellson is seen here with his friend, fellow musician and store owner Ron Weinstein.

Ron and Charma Weinstein, owners of an EmbroidMe in Las Vegas, really know how to drum up new business.

The couple called an old friend of Ron's and asked him to make an appearance at the shop. That old friend just happened to be Louie Bellson, considered by many to be the world's greatest jazz drummer. Married to Pearl Bailey, Bellson toured with jazz legends such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie and his wife, and played with "The Tonight Show" band during Johnny Carson's heyday.

Weinstein met Bellson 43 years ago in New York, when Weinstein himself was a 16-year-old drummer. They struck up a friendship so close that Bellson sent Weinstein to the Berklee College of Music in Boston and later brought him to Hollywood to work on Bailey's show, "The Pearl Bailey Show."

Weinstein has since traded his drum set for embroidery machinery and a digital garment printer, but he and Bellson remain close friends. At 84 years old, Bellson currently is out promoting his new CD, Louie & Clark Expedition 2, that he recently released with Clark Terry. Weinstein arranged a meet and greet with the jazz legend at his EmbroidMe store.

"About 100 people showed up," says Weinstein. "We took photos of guests with Louie and immediately put them on T-shirts with our digital garment printer." Weinstein notes that the event definitely helped bring in new business. Not only did he sell the printed shirts, he also had garments embroidered with Bellson's name available for sale. The store held a drawing for an autographed CD, and Weinstein culled a mailing list from the entries as well.

Weinstein was pleased about the additional business. Like many apparel decorators, he is faced with the challenge of the rising price of goods. "We've had a couple of increases from manufacturers because of transportation," he says. "That can be hard to explain to customers."

The Weinsteins had no experience in the decorated apparel business before they purchased their EmbroidMe franchise in 2005. While they're certainly doing a great job on their own with promotions, they enjoy the technical and marketing support offered by EmbroidMe. Because of their Las Vegas Boulevard address, they get a lot of last-minute orders for conventions, and they've come to specialize in such last-minute requests. "Sometimes products don't arrive when they're supposed to," says Weinstein. "We're also finding that companies don't want to bring items with them, so they order from us to have when they arrive."

As a former musician, Weinstein has held events similar to Bellson's meet and greet with other old friends, and he plans to have more in the future. Unusual for an embroidery shop, these events are undoubtedly a great way to drum up new business.  — Liz Aull

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