HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL— Gaia Group USA has rolled out a children’s dinnerware collection featuring licensed artwork from the estate of Disney’s legendary designer Mary Blair. The “woman owned/women led” company found the ideal match in Blair, who was “one of the first barrier breakers for women in the business world,” said Stuart McFaul, vp/marketing, Gaia Group. In this way, he noted, the Mary Blair design story appeals to children as much as it does adults.
In the male-dominated business world of the 1950s, Blair was said to be well-respected by Walt Disney and his studio’s animation designers. “She was, for women, a real glass ceiling breaker and a woman who broke barriers in the fields of design and animation. Being a woman at that time and having as much influence as she had was very unique,” noted McFaul.
Fast forward to today, the message of strong women in business is reflected in Gaia’s leadership: Gaia Group’s founder and CEO Eloise Huang, before starting Gaia Group earlier this year, acted as CEO of brand and product development firm Bantum Inc. Gaia’s president and general manager, Marie McGrath-Brown, served as vp/gmm of The Great Indoors and dvp/housewares for Sears.
“Gaia Group is a very family focused company. Our target market is women and their families. Being women owned, women led, that’s a very strong theme for us,” said McFaul. Adding the children’s dinnerware helps serve the full spectrum of this family life, from what’s on the table for older children and adults, to younger children as well, he added.
The World Of Mary Blair collection also is appealing to many, he said, as the dinnerware fits in with the melamine material trend. He added, “Families, particularly today, have a craving for things that feel a little safer, a little more traditional, a little bit happier. Mary Blair artwork represents an innocent time when families were traditional. It represents happy children doing happy things, the opportunity to enjoy fantasy.”
Mary Blair is known in the illustration community for her vibrant color combinations and bold, simple shapes. She is best known for her work as the designer of the Disneyland attraction, “It’s a Small World” and for her concept designs on the Disney films Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and Cinderella, and her art supervision for The Three Caballeros.
Disney’s prior works had been more naturalistic, however, Blair brought more of an abstract design inspiration to these films, with a strong, vivid use of color, said McFaul. Blair’s work has also been utilized for advertisements, theatrical set designs, large-scale theme park murals, and several of her illustrated children’s books from the 1950s remain in print, such as I Can Fly by Ruth Krauss. According to McFaul, there is a “whole subculture of Mary Blair fans.”
For those who may not be familiar with Blair’s story, it will be reflected on packaging and on the Gaia Group website. The company is also supporting the collection launch with a social media effort to attract followers of Mary Blair or animation with the ability to learn more about her and where they can buy the products.
“I think her designs were ahead of their time. They’re classic, they play
as well today as they did in the past,” said McFaul.
Gaia Group used a consumer survey online via the Magic of Mary Blair website and a Facebook ad campaign in order to help select the four patterns for the collection that resonated the most. “Half of the patterns are gender neutral. That’s an important thing for us. Some parents like more traditional ideas, such as dolls, and prefer Doll Girl. Overall, the feeling that we got from people who took the survey, is it’s something that they look at and it makes them happy,” said McFaul.
The World of Mary Blair collection includes five-piece melamine dinnerware sets, and acrylic straw cups and sippy cups in four patterns: Juice Girl, Doll Girl, Trains and Elephants.
“I think they’ll be drawn to the colorful designs, and the feel good, retro feeling that they have,” said McFaul.
The suggested retail prices for the World of Mary Blair collection are: the children’s sets, $39.99, the sippy cup, $6.99, and the straw cup, $8.99.
The World of Mary Blair line from Gaia Group is available now on select online retailers including Amazon, Bed Bath & Beyond, Houzz, Overstock.com, PinupGirlClothing.com, UnbeatableSale.com, Wayfair and The Walt Disney Family Museum. Gaia Group is also aiming its brick-and-mortar sales efforts toward independent stores.