WESST Client Profiles

Main Street Arts is a creative and exciting art space providing an outlet for artists in a prime location in the heart of downtown Roswell.

Peggy decided to give herself a gift – to learn how to draw. She found it to be a passion and as it developed she began dreaming on a bigger scale. It was then she knew she wanted to have her very own art gallery.

Purchasing an older building downtown, which needed renovations, proved to be quite costly. Owning an art gallery would mean working every day with no real ability to hire help and no time off. Plus, she didn’t know the first thing about starting a business, much less running a business. Additionally, art is not a need, it is a purchase based on wants. To sell enough art to make a decent living, especially at the beginning, would mean she would have had to have a large amount of inventory.

Peggy thought outside the box and developed a lease contract to invite other artists to join a co-op to share gallery space, pay a reasonable amount of rent, share responsibilities such as taking turns working in the gallery, manning the register, and helping customers.  By starting the co-op, she was able to develop different revenue streams other than the rent paid to her by co-op artists. Main Street Arts is full of artists who hold workshops, sell their art or teach others one-on-one. Peggy personally holds numerous paint and wine parties, teaching others to paint an original “masterpiece” in less than three hours. Her personal artwork has been made into prints, put on t-shirts, cards, pillows, etc., all of which you can find at Main Street Arts.

With WESST’s assistance, she has conquered such challenges as Gross Receipts Tax; Marketing and Legal Representation. Peggy is happy, continues learning, and is able to help other artists get their start and follow their dream.

“You just have to let your weird out and let it work for you!” says Peggy Krantz.