While she has only worked there since January, an employee of Broadway Paper, a retailer of high-end stationery, greeting cards, wrapping and paper craft supplies located in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward neighborhood, has acquired the business.
Kate Strzok, who worked previously as the store’s director of shipping and receiving, recently acquired Broadway Paper from Tracie Stier-Johnson. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Although she has only worked at the 5,200-square-foot store since January,
Strzok is well-acquainted with Broadway Paper’s stock.
“I’ve always loved the store. When I lived in San Francisco while I was doing my undergrad, I always stocked up on greeting cards from here,” she said.
While working in the store’s shipping and receiving department might not sound exciting to some, it gave Strzok just what she wanted – and a taste for what Broadway Paper could offer.
“I love stationery and I was the first to open boxes,” she said. “I was also calling vendors and establishing relationships.”
After just a few months in her new job, Strzok learned that Stier-Johnson was looking for a buyer for Broadway Paper. In her time there, the pair had grown close, often talking about their experiences as Oak Creek High School graduates, their love for high-end paper goods, and the store.
“We’d just chat about anything. She’s very friendly and you could tell she cared,” Strzok said. “We just connected really well, and she knew I loved the store.”
When a few offers to buy Broadway Paper fell short of her expectations, Stier-Johnson set a date for liquidation of the store’s assets.
Then, in an email, Strzok told her she wanted to buy the company. Stier-Johnson accepted her offer.
“There was no transition. I made my offer in mid-April, and we were into mid- May when we were figuring it out,” Strzok said. “I was transitioning into a lot more responsibility. Tracie trained me and I trained with other people to learn the office manager stuff.”
Broadway Paper has eight part-time employees. Strzok now works 12-hour days on a regular basis and frequently gets assistance from family members. But the hard work will be worth it, she says.
“I like it. I don’t mind putting in so much time to learn. When it’s your business, it’s like your child,” Strzok said.
Strzok is the fourth owner of Broadway Paper since it was founded in 1988. She hopes to build on Stier-Johnson’s success by maintaining a balance between large national brands, small vendors and emerging artists and brands.
“We’re examining how to introduce new merchandise from new companies but we are keeping things like gift wrap from some of the big companies,” Strzok said. “The smaller companies have a story. You can make a personal connection and I want our customers to experience that too.”
The recession has hurt many retailers, and Broadway Paper’s sales are ranging between “holding our own to terrible,” Strzok said, giving extra weight to any changes she makes in her company’s range of products.
“We’re definitely down now, but that adds some excitement,” she said. “It’s like a case study – can Kate make it? That’s why any changes are ever-so-important. But I feel like my style and taste aligns with our customers. I like what Tracie likes.”
Broadway Paper
191 N. Broadway, Milwaukee
BroadwayPaper.com
