A Letter from Creativity for Kids Founder Phyllis Brody

Hello Everyone,

On November 2, it will be 20 years since Creativity for Kids joined Faber-Castell. Some of you were part of that momentous change and others, who have come on board later, have heard the exciting story.

Evelyn and I met the dashing Count Anton von Faber-Castell at an art supply show and he connected with our mission and our products. We, on the other hand, had used Faber Castell products since childhood and were drawn to this legendary company. After months of conversations, it was decided that there were many synergies and we would become part of the Faber-Castell company.

At that time CFK was located in an old warehouse building on Central Avenue and 18th Street in downtown Cleveland. Our shipping department was on the 3rd floor. The freight elevators often stopped working. The windows were drafty. But we loved the building and so did Count Toni when he came for his first visit. He thought it had old world charm, like the Faber- Castell company. So, they moved in with all the FC inventory and we went to Stein, Germany and met the people there, then met folks from Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia, holding pow wows to get to know each other better and learning about the two cultures and how we could merge them. Over time, as we moved more of the assembly to China and faced the distribution challenges of working in a building that was not meant for modern commerce, we found our present home here on Allen Drive.

During the past 20 years people have come and gone. They- you- have contributed in so many ways to make the company what it is today. Under the outstanding leadership of Jamie Gallagher and with the support of Don Fischer, the Leadership teams and each and every one of you we have become a mature and creative workplace while maintaining the original vision of Creativity for Kids and the values and standards of Faber-Castell.

Our company has a bright future due to that important decision we made back in 1999, to the great team at Faber-Castell USA and our FC colleagues around the globe.

Congratulations and Happy Anniversary!

Phyllis