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Flashback Friday Part 1: The 1970s
Hero Arts
Hero Arts is celebrating 45 years in business this year! What an incredible journey it has been. YOU are a wonderful part of our history, and now that our anniversary is here, we'd like to invite you to celebrate this milestone alongside us! In the next several weeks, join us for fun, contests, behind-the-scenes content, lots of giveaways, new products, and more. Let's get this party started, friends!
The start of it all? Flashback Fridays. Over the course of five Fridays, we'll be sharing the story of our five decades as a company.
The setting: Berkeley, California, mid-1970s. Let's hear about the earliest days of Hero Arts from our CEO, Aaron Leventhal:
"Hero Arts was founded in May of 1974, near the end of the school year, when my mother (Jackie) decided she would try out her hobby at local craft fairs. Early designs included funky cartoon images, irreverent messages, and drawings from friends and family, including Betty Boop, cartoon monkeys, a cow by 4 year-old Aaron, and more. Most of the stamps were handmade in our bathroom, where our vulcanizer sat, that pressed rubber. The rubber was then cut and assembled in Jackie's bedroom, before being sent out via mail or sold at fairs."
Wondering what the first catalogs looked like? Well, they were actually fold-out posters...
Here's a closer look at the inside and back of the 1978 Hero Arts product poster.
Aaron even found this photo showing an early craft show booth from the late 1970s!
If you're interested in hearing more of the Hero Arts story, grab a beverage and enjoy this interview from a few years ago, when Aaron sat down for an Online Card Classes Crafty Chat. We think you'll enjoy hearing this story directly from him!
When did you start stamping? Let us know in a comment below and we will pick one winner at random to receive a $25 Hero Arts gift card! Comment by Thursday, April 25 at 11:59pm PT and you'll be entered to win.
Tomorrow we'll begin sharing peeks from our upcoming 45th Anniversary Summer Catalog! That's right, this year's Summer Catalog is one big anniversary celebration that we can't wait to share with you.
Thank you for joining us today!
I remember when I would send in a card idea and receive a stamp from Hero. I love your stamps!
I’m 71 years old and I’ve always loved crafting. I remember getting into paper crafting in the 70’s and my addiction to stamping was off and running! I loved mounted rubber stamps, but I wasn’t always successful at getting good images. Now with my Misti and wonderful products (like Hero Arts — I love your layering stamp and die sets), I’ve become a “pro” (OK, maybe not a pro, but definitely better at it). I’m now a happy granny with time to indulge my passion for card making.
This is AMAZING! I love the old pics! I started crafting from childhood but scrapbooking and cardmaking in junior high… I used to cut letters and pictures out of magazines to do my albums because there was no such thing as papers, stickers, brads, etc. :)
Ooooh, I so love looking back at the vintage stamp catalogs! I’m so glad you kept them! Yes, I remember that Crafty Chat and I will go watch/listen again – I remember I really enjoyed it the first time! I started stamping in the ’90s when a friend invited me to her house to make Christmas tags and wrapping paper. We had a roll of newsprint that we stamped on to make the gift wrap and then stamped on tiny folded cards for the tags and attached some ribbon. It was so much fun! I wanted to learn more so a short time later I took a few card classes and I was hooked! Making cards is a joy – for the maker and for the recipient!
I think I started stamping in 2005 but took a break and then picked up again in 2010. Can’t seem to stop now! :-)