Makers Series: WerkShoppe
Location: Palm Springs, CA | Specialty: Modern Art Puzzles
Get a load of this art-forward jigsaw puzzle company: WerkShoppe is an Art & Design community that collaborates with artists—both emerging and established—to bring beautiful art to your living spaces. Who doesn’t love a puzzle? It’s art you can touch!
You can find two WerkShoppe puzzles in our shop: Morning Light and Tropical Vases. WerkShoppe is also featured in our Happy Place box.
Of themselves, Ann Marie and Wayne say, “We help people connect with art and with each other. We’re definitely picky about the art we love but we’re not snobby about where to find it. Art brings us so much happiness and we want you to feel that way too.” And after reading this interview with co-founder Ann Marie, we think that’s exactly how you’ll feel.
© WerkShoppe
© WerkShoppe
Abby (Willinglee)
We love that you’re so focused on bringing artist work to larger audiences, and think that doing so through puzzles is pretty genius. What initially inspired you to work with emerging artists?
Ann Marie (WerkShoppe)
Wayne and I love art and have been professionally involved in identifying trends and applying imagery to products in our prior work-life experiences. Through licensing arrangements and artist collaborations, we have grown to not only have a keen eye for what resonates with the consumer, or in this case, the puzzle-maker, but have grown to admire the artists, their creative processes, and their bodies of work. Creatives are not typically good at promoting themselves, or their art, so we love having this opportunity to bring their beautiful creations to a broader audience. This passion of ours is further advanced by having a give-back component to WerkShoppe with a portion of the proceeds going to art education and enrichment programs.
Abby
Tell us about the process of starting WerkShoppe. How long have you been in business? How did you come up with the name?
Ann Marie
WerkShoppe opened its virtual doors in November of 2020. It had been in the “werks” for a while in our heads and we had been talking about whether we wanted to start another new business. We love doing puzzles (something we discovered about each other during one of our times together in the home we share in Palm Springs) and had started to think about how we could bring our creative point of view to the puzzle space. Who knew that a pandemic would turn our world upside down? Puzzles became impossible to find while everyone was forced to stay home and, although it sounds counterintuitive, we are happy that we did not launch during those difficult months. Although we could have made a lot of sales, we didn’t want to open under so much pressure… and there wasn’t a printing house or puzzle manufacturer who would have taken our calls anyway. We wanted to launch when we felt our timing was right.
The name WerkShoppe was a journey from the standard spelling of workshop, which obviously was already taken as a website domain and social media handles, so Wayne started playing with the spelling in a phonetic and creative way. It werked! We envision the company as an artist community where ideas are “werkshopped” together between us and the artists. Jigsaw puzzles are our first foray into building out and into this space.
“WerkShoppe is not your average puzzle company; we want to be edgy and different and allow the creative styles of the artists to be first and foremost.”
© WerkShoppe
Abby
I love that. How beautiful to be in the midst of the pandemic, seeing puzzle sales skyrocket, and deciding to open intentionally at a different time. How do you find your artists?
Ann Marie
Wayne spearheads the efforts to identify artists for our new puzzle introductions and collections. We discuss the subject matter that we want to offer based on what we feel best expands and complements our existing assortment. WerkShoppe is not your average puzzle company; we want to be edgy and different and allow the creative styles of the artists to be first and foremost. Sometimes we can use the art as is, and other times Wayne will engage in a creative process with the artist to help make the piece perfect for the puzzle-making experience. So, the level of collaboration can vary. We love abstract and geometrics, but they tend not to be our best sellers. Nonetheless, we want them as a part of our collections so will continue to offer puzzles that fit into this genre. Representative subject matter always sells best, as evident in our Ruru Owl, Brand New Day sun image, and other interpretive yet still recognizable imagery—think animals, flowers, outside views, and indoor room settings, etc.
With the advent of the internet and the varied social media platforms, artists from all over the world can post their work; it’s a treasure hunt to discover great artists globally and it doesn’t take long to find once we’ve gone down the rabbit hole with Instagram, Pinterest, Etsy, and the like in search of the next beautiful work of art.
Abby
How cool! As an art school grad, that makes me giddy. Do you take submissions?
Ann Marie
Yes, we have collabs@werkshoppe.com where artists can introduce themselves and send us their website and social media engagement, their digital portfolio, and/or specific pieces of art.
Abby
What type of art do you find yourselves looking for? Do you try to find pieces that will make challenging puzzles?
Ann Marie
We love color and visual interest! We are not about traditional pastoral landscapes or art masterpieces (not that they aren’t beautiful in their own right); there are plenty of established puzzle companies that cover that ground. WerkShoppe is about discovery and exposing a new generation of puzzle lovers to a pastime that is packed with all the right ingredients for an engaging and enjoyable experience. We look for modern, relevant, eye-catching art that draws the maker in. It’s “art you can get your hands on” as one of our tag lines calls out. And, on top of that, YES, our puzzles are challenging! We want that to be the case. That’s why the 300 and 500-piece count puzzles are great entry points to build up to the 1000-piece count, for those who are up for the challenge.
Many, probably most, of our relationships are with fine artists who may have never had their originals reproduced. Wayne will begin with an introduction of who we are, what we do, and why. If this is of interest to the artists, he moves into explaining the process. Next steps are discussions about compensation and an agreement that will protect the interests of the artist and WerkShoppe. Originals created specifically for WerkShoppe are our first choice, but we will select from existing art if we feel we can make it work in a puzzle format. Sometimes it’s starting with an existing original and tweaking it to meet the criteria of a great jigsaw puzzle…lots of design elements, color, going to the edge, and so forth. If the artist is amenable, we can modify the imagery ourselves either by hand or digitally, utilizing our in-house creative talent.
© WerkShoppe
“We love puzzling because it allows us to turn away from digital distractions. It provides the opportunity to connect, much like the action of putting puzzle pieces together.”
Abby
Woah! That’s a lot to manage. I’m sure most artists are hugely humbled when you reach out to them. Have you done all of your puzzles?
Ann Marie
Wayne has, and many of them he has done more than once. We offer “100% completion satisfaction” so if a puzzle piece has gone missing, we pull from the arsenal of pre-made puzzles to send out to the customer so they can complete their puzzle.
I haven’t done all of our newest puzzles (yet) but your question has reminded me that I need to put in my own personal order 😉.
Abby
Alex and I love doing puzzles as a couples’ activity. What do you love most about puzzling?
Ann Marie
Being able to turn away from our daily digital distractions. It gives us a chance to challenge our minds in a different way—concentrating and problem-solving while enjoying an activity that is stimulating, rewarding, and fun. Doing a puzzle together provides the opportunity to connect, much like the action of putting puzzle pieces together. Other activities such as gaming, movie-watching, etc. aren’t conducive to talking and communicating.
We also have come to appreciate the different methods people use to make their puzzles. There’s the edges first technique, the take out and turn all the pieces over approach, the organize the pieces by color, shape, distinctive attributes, etc.…so many strategies all leading to the same end result. This is so fascinating to us—especially as we continue to get to know more and more puzzle fanatics.
Abby
Totally! I’ve never heard or thought of organizing the pieces by shape! Alex and I are a combination of edges first and turn all the pieces over people.
What’s something unexpected you encountered during your time in business?
Ann Marie
Both of us have been in consumer products for a long time. Our careers have been dedicated to creating products and programs for big-box and mass-market chain stores. Launching a website and eCommerce company where we had to learn (quickly) and rely on social media, reviews, online advertising, shipping, etc was, and still is, hard—and admittedly, intimidating. The beauty of it all, though, is we learn a little every day and it keeps us humble. Walking away from our experience with making everything offshore, servicing the retail giants, and having to sacrifice our own points of view for that of big commerce, feels liberating and empowering.
Abby
I’ll bet! Such a good feeling. On that note, what would you say is the most rewarding part of owning your business?
Ann Marie
WerkShoppe is what we want it to be and what we make it. We are still so young (ok, not us but the company), but we want to bring a little bit of happiness and a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment to those who decide to buy our puzzles. We want honest and open relationships with our artists, our team, our followers, and our customers.
“We manufacture in the USA of the best, environmentally safe, and sustainable materials and give back to our artists and art-related charitable endeavors.”
© WerkShoppe
Abby
That’s a beautiful way of viewing your young company. I’d say you’ve accomplished that so far, and see you continuing that trend.
What would surprise people about how your puzzles are made?
Ann Marie
First, the board is manufactured specifically for the puzzle industry. Take a few minutes and explore the board maker ESCA’s website… it’s well worth it! The blueboard’s density and layering technique keeps the board flat, eliminating curling. The making of the die plates is another very important component and can take up to 6 months as they are hand-built. Manufacturing in the USA allows us to be close to where our puzzles are being made which we are all about, especially after making everything halfway around the world in the past. Making in our own backyard so to speak!
Abby
6 months! Woah! These are truly some valuable puzzles. Besides at Willinglee & WerkShoppe, where can customers find your puzzles?
Ann Marie
WerkShoppe has a storefront on Amazon, and we are very diligent about protecting the puzzles and their pricepoints-we do not discount or allow any 3rd-party sellers as that just creates problems of policing and controlling. We are also on a wholesale platform, Faire, and are beginning to work with a national wholesale sales representation in parts of the US, along with a Canadian distributorship. The prices of our puzzles are not inexpensive for apparent reasons; we manufacture in the USA of the best, environmentally safe, and sustainable materials and give back to our artists and art-related charitable endeavors. Our puzzles make great gifts as they are packaged in beautiful decorative tubes which can be kept out. We see WerkShoppe in independent stores that have the same point of view.
Abby
I think we share that point of view with you! Without giving any secrets away, any idea about what's next for WerkShoppe?
Ann Marie
We will continue to expand our offerings in the 300, 500, and 1000-piece count. Embellishment, like foil in metallics and colors, is always a nice touch. WerkShoppe will continue to shine a light on emerging and independent artists through ongoing new introductions of jigsaw puzzles, and other products as we continue to grow and expand.
Abby
Wonderful! At Willinglee, we believe in lifting other small companies up. Any favorite small businesses you enjoy?
Ann Marie
Wayne isn’t a big shopper but we both do love to see small businesses and new brands grow and be promoted. Seeking out local businesses, such as those using (more) sustainable materials, exploring products that are handcrafted and made in small-batch, in other words NOT mass-produced, and even one-of-a-kinds, as is the case with our quest for beautiful art. And, even better if the company has a give-back component to their business model.
We’re broadening our shopping scope to include more POC and LGBTQIA+ companies; opening our shopping experience to encompass a more diverse approach to browsing and shopping. It is so much easier with Facebook, Instagram, and other social platforms. Etsy has such great items from makers, collectors, and small businesses. I can lose a few hours once I hop on that site! Same with Chairish. We know it may not be considered a small business, but the platform allows collectors and small businesses with art, furniture, and decorative accessories to have storefronts that are visible to those who are looking to buy something, be inspired, or simply browse.
Abby
I’ve heard the best things about Chairish! Thanks for bringing it up 🙂. And thank you for talking to us about your delightful company. We’re excited to see what comes next of Wekrshoppe. If you’ll excuse me, Alex and I have to go finish our 1000-piece “Morning Light” jigsaw...
Find more Makers Series on our blog, or shop WerkShoppe products below.
