This is an interesting case about May Marx, the 72-year-old Toronto, Canada sculptor who creates original bronze works for corporations.
As a sculptor, Mrs. Marx created large bronze abstract sculptors. As any artist and small business person, May had to create her art and spend a lot of time and effort into figuring out how best to sell her work. Her selling efforts included how much she would sell her work for, how she would sell them and to who she would sell to.
Mrs. Marx realized that her sculptors were too expensive for most people to buy and that a small a number of sculptures could be created as easily as one large sculptor. One day she read a news story about, hockey legend Wayne Gretzky , who received a gold watch for his achievements and she wondered if a sculptor would have been enjoyed by Wayne.
Mrs. Marx’s hunch was right as she produced 12 award-size sculptures and presented her idea and product to an art consultant. The sculptors were presented to a large corporation and an order of 60 followed very quickly. She quickly realized she had found a niche and was doing something that no one else was doing. Business took off immediately and she continued to grow her business.
The concept of a business niche is something that every business person is looking for. If you can create a product that people want and that others are not providing, then you have a niche. Entrepreneurs often give a lot of thought to what people want and then they figure out how to provide the product or service.
Mrs. Marx is a great example of someone who has pursued her passion and talent for sculpturing. She is also an example of a businesswomen who looked at the business aspects of her profession and figured out how to sell her work and succeed.