(Editor’s note: This is the 12th installment in a monthly series highlighting some of the region’s unsung manufacturers that make products essential to the economy and, in many cases, our way of life. See previous installments here.)
When ChemArt fulfilled its first order of Christmas ornaments for the White House Historical Association in 1981, the nonprofit commissioned around 1,500 ornaments.
That Christmas ornament, a simple angel design inscribed with “Christmas 1981, The White House,” began a yearly tradition that skyrocketed in popularity by the end of the decade.
In 1981, ChemArt produced around 300,000 ornaments for the association. And today, the annual iteration of the ornament calls for more than 1 million orders.
“Instead of just doing philanthropic work, it was a way to raise funds on a consistent basis” for the association, said ChemArt President David Marquis. “It just caught fire, and it’s a unique phenomenon.”
When ChemArt launched in 1976, the business was one of many thriving jewelry manufacturers in Rhode Island, then commonly considered the jewelry capital of the world.
The manufacturer hasn’t completely abandoned its roots, and still produces a limited jewelry selection at its Lincoln headquarters. But as that industry lost some of its luster over decades in the Ocean State, ChemArt pivoted to its primary focus to the niche market it’s known for today.
The company’s signature product traces back to a ChemArt representative approaching the White House Historical Association with a pitch for an annual Christmas ornament series, Marquis said. Then-First Lady Nancy Reagan commissioned about 1,500 ornaments that year.
Jacqueline Kennedy founded the White House Historical Association in 1961 when she was first lady “to restore the beauty of the house, the people’s house,” Marquis said, “but also to educate the public about the people who lived in the house, and the house itself. … So, for a lot of people who like history, [the ornaments] would be a must buy.
“Those types of individuals buy even in downtimes,” he continued. “This is a unique gift that they’ll give to friends and family, and they collect them.”
[caption id="attachment_445530" align="alignright" width="467"]
ChemArt, located in Lincoln, is a manufacturer specializing in custom keepsakes and ornaments. David Marquis, president, gave us a tour that included many examples of their products. Brian Dubois, chemical etcher.
PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO[/caption]
Now in its 42nd year, the ornament series’ popularity continues to boom, with around 2.5 million to 3 million ornaments sold per year, though mostly around the nation’s capital.
“It’s a very-unique-to-that-area service,” Marquis said, noting that around 70% to 80% of the presidential ornament sales take place in the Washington, D.C., metro area, with the association doing limited marketing.
In addition to growing in popularity, the ornaments have become increasingly intricate over the years. Ornaments typically correspond to a U.S. president in chronological order, with exceptions for major historical events such as the presidency’s bicentennial anniversary.
The upcoming 2023 ornament, which recognizes the Gerald R. Ford presidency, features an intricately designed wreath that includes homages to the former president, such as an image of his family’s dogs, Ford’s college football number and his Eagle Scout troop number.
In addition to primarily serving a small geographic area, also distinctive to the company is its production method, which was invented by ChemArt founder Richard Beaupre.
Beaupre, who died in 2018, worked as a process engineering chemist before launching the company and was a “mad scientist” type, Marquis said.
“He created what is called the photo resist,” Marquis said. “So, the change he did was he took print circuit board technology, and he applied it to decorative pieces,” rather than using industrial component parts.
“What makes ChemArt unique is it’s a combination of about six or seven industries,” Marquis added, including design, etching, digital, and screen printing and plating. “Most people do one or a few – we do all.”
A team of 11 staff designers conceptualizes the keepsakes at the Lincoln manufacturing facility, which employs 127 employees across two buildings. The designs are then sent to the company’s manufacturing workers, who start with raw brass, then run the ornaments through these various processes before assembling the pieces.
In addition to its annual creation for the White House, ChemArt manufactures custom Christmas ornaments and keepsakes for a variety of private organizations and companies, such as NASA and Disney, and also serves the retail market. But the business-to-business market continues to comprise the bulk of ChemArt’s business, with the company deriving about 20% of its business from retail, while the remainder comes from private orders.
Its Christmas ornament continues to be the primary earner for the White House Historical Association, with the single, annual ornament sale driving around 80% of its revenue.
But ChemArt has also significantly expanded its retail offerings in recent years, said CEO David Beaupre, who took over the company after his father, Richard Beaupre, died. The company previously did very limited sales outside of the East Coast but has since expanded its designs to serve a wider audience.
“You name it, we have the theme pretty covered,” Beaupre said, with ornaments geared toward “everything from southwest to coastal to mountains to seasonal, even just general items,” with coastal and nature designs standing out as the two largest general categories.
And soon, ChemArt will expand outside of the United States, Beaupre said, with plans to launch in Canada by January, and Europe in the near future.
(Updated to clarify that Jacqueline Kennedy, who did not have the name Onassis when she was first lady, founded the White House Historical Association in 1961, and First Lady Nancy Reagan commissioned Christmas ornaments from ChemArt in 1981.)
