Modern Party Art Needs Your Help!

Hello, my name is Sammy. My husband and I own Modern Party Art, a paint party business for adults and children. We have many accomplishments, and I'm so proud of how hard we have worked and how many lives we have impacted. However, in the last few months, we have faced severe headwinds, creating the need for an urgent capital raise. We are asking for $15000 to cover costs to open up our new space. We need your help to continue to thrive and execute our community-building mission.

What the funds will be used for:

$6600 for move-in fees/deposit for a new location

$4900 for installing a utility sink

$3500 for painting, building a partition wall, and obtaining permits

Our Website Link 

Here is a little background:

 

I am Sammy, the artist and instructor (along with many other hats). My husband Justin and I (and our four young kids) started a business in 2019 doing paint parties. I was able to quit my job and do my passion, art and teaching, full time. In March 2020, we signed our first lease. Then the pandemic hit. We didn’t qualify for PPE or any of that since our business was technically established after 2/27/2020. We continued using our savings and having virtual events to help pay the bills. And it worked. We were doing so well! In July 2020, we opened our doors and started having public events. They were a hit! People were excited to get outside and do something fun. Art with us at Modern Party Art is therapeutic; we do it with music, comedy, and more. Justin was able to quit his job as well. It was just him and I, with the help of our kids now and then.

We were excited to discover that we were New England's first black-owned paint party studio! But the place we rented for our studio was impractical. We didn’t have plumbing and shared a common bathroom with a restaurant, making it challenging to say the least. However, we made it work.

Soon we came into the opportunity to upgrade our space to another location with a new landlord in a new town. As soon as we signed the lease in January 2022, the pipes froze and damaged over 2000 sq ft of space. Insurance didn’t cover it, nor did our landlord's insurance. After spending all of our savings to repair the damage, we ended up being late on the rent. The landlord seemed okay with it and had several phone calls to “work with us.” Eventually, we caught up, but to do so, we had to close one of our locations. It made more sense to close our first location. The landlord for that location abided, and we were able to move out by June 1. Once we paid all we owed at our second location, the new landlord got us an eviction letter. There was no proof since we had phone conversations that we had an agreement to be caught up by the date we did catch up on. Our first location landlord was able to speak to his new tenants and extend our move-out date to the end of June.

So here we are, with no place to go or extra money to spare. We have applied for loan, looked for investors, explored and won pitch contests for small amounts, and most importantly, applied for grants with no luck. We need your help to make this work.

Why we are essential in our community:

There were few black-owned art businesses, let alone in New England. We want to continue to represent people of color. I love seeing a little Hispanic, Cape Verdean, or Black girl say she wants to be like me when she grows up. Being an inspiration to others is my motivation in life.

We intend to continue to hold free community events and pop-up shops with affordable vendor tables for women and people of color to sell their products in person. 

We hope to continue to inspire people through music and art while laughing, dancing, and loving each other!

Here are some images of our success