Brian Adams has been immersed in the art industry since he can remember, from being a part of the Rainbow Readers of Reading Theatre Group, to dressing public figures and collaborating with high-end brands as an executive personal shopper at Bloomingdales, to opening The Art Room on Penn Avenue.
Q: What made you want to become an entrepreneur after finding your way back to your passion for painting, ceramics and other art media?
After I left Bloomingdales and had time to really think to myself and find who I am and what I want to do, especially at 35 years old when you’ve had jobs like I’ve had, I thought “where do you go from being an executive personal shopper for Bloomingdales getting Gucci, Chanel and these brands because they needed me to wear it?” I dressed the Creed movie that came out in 2015, dressed Andy and Tammy Reid when they were with the Philadelphia Eagles…but when I moved back to the [West Reading] Borough, I felt that something was missing from the Avenue and that The Art Room was the missing puzzle piece to bring in a place where people can do an activity and also express themselves.
Q: What do people gain from making art that they may not consider?
Everyone that comes in can see or make something that reminds them of their grandparents, their parents or a holiday. It’s important to bridge the gap between family, friends, memories and art. Say you paint a Christmas tree with your boyfriend or girlfriend; that is going to be the tree that you painted together that you put out every single year. It also helps stress, depression and anxiety. When you are focusing on painting or whatever medium you’re creating on at the moment, whether its pottery, ceramic, glass, etc., for that moment you lose yourself and truly focus on something other than what was on your mind before that. You are able to zone in on something for the first time in a while when you’re not constantly working, talking on the phone or scrolling on social media.
Q: What have you learned over the last year of being an entrepreneur?
It's a really big misconception that just because you open a business on Penn Avenue means you’ll be successful. You need to work hard, dedicate yourself, and if you are not willing to wait it out and go through trials and errors, then this isn't the right path for you. You'll never have a perfect day, week or month. You constantly have to evolve to meet the needs and desires that the public and the customers want because it's not about what you want, but what the customers want in that time and place. You need to be very strong and have to be able to handle stress. You need to be resilient to those types of things.
Q: What do you do to unwind when you are not running your business?
I am a very big fan of my dog, Gigi. I don’t go anywhere without Gigi, whether it’s our wholesaler in Denver or to the grocery store. We go on walks every day, especially on my days off. We take advantage of the Wyomissing Park trails and love spending time outdoors. I am also very big on starting canned food drives. I recently did a food drive with the Hope Rescue Mission that fed over 1,200 individuals. The Grocery Outlet in Shillington donated more than 100 loaves of bread and I continue donating every few months once the box gets full.
Q: What is new or up-and-coming for The Art Room this year?
We are working on converting the back garage into a pottery wheelhouse. We have a whole line of stepping stones to add gems, stones and beads to. We are also launching outdoor hanging decor, customized dinner dishes and kitchenware, tons of new planters and customizable light-up baseballs where people can add their teams on them.
