PRECIOUS MOMENTS

'Precious Moments' is widely known as a series of collectible porcelain bisque figurines. The original artwork was created by the American illustrator Sam Butcher in the 1970s. The figurines depict young children with distinctive teardrop-shaped eyes, and are often accompanied by inspirational messages which are also found on the products.
Precious Moments is also the brand name for a series of giftware and collectibles licensed by Precious Moments, Inc (a.k.a. PMI) based on the artworks by Sam Butcher.

Contents

General

Figurines

The beginning

Enesco

Collectors and clubs

In popular culture

Precious Moments, Inc.

The Precious Moments Chapel

Artistic value

See also

Sources

Footnotes

External links

General

'Precious Moments' is a brand of products based on illustrations by artist Sam Butcher. His simple illustrations of children with teardrop shaped eyes include messages of heartfelt endurance and inspiration. Christian themes appear throughout his work, as Butcher is a born-again Christian.
The flagship product of the brand is the "Precious Moments^TM Porcelain Bisque Figurines" that has been in the market since 1977. At its peak, this product line saw forty times the sales of the next-best selling Precious Moments product line (''Enesco'').
Precious Moments, Inc. is also the name of the company that maintains and licenses copyrighted material pertaining to the designs by Sam Butcher. 'Precious Moments, Inc.' a.k.a. 'PMI' was incorporated in 1989. 80% of the royalties collected by the company was from its licensee Enesco Corp. for the porcelain figurine line.
Also, the same year, Sam Butcher used his profits from PMI to build his longtime dream - a chapel in Carthage, Missouri. Honored as the father of Precious Moments, he appears at some events in Carthage and occasionally at large scale collector club events, like those which took place in May of 2005 in Hawaii for the club's 25th anniversary. Sam Butcher currently resides in Aklan,Philippines and spends little time in the US.

Figurines

The story of how Precious Moments became porcelain figurines is familiar to many collectors. What is known to be the status quo story is that Gene Freedman, founding chairman of Enesco, Corp., found Sam Butcher and then convinced Sam to have sculptors, bring life to his "children" as three dimensional figurines.

The beginning

Precious Moments is well known for the porcelain figurines sold by Enesco Corp. since 1977. Sam Butcher originally started scribbling the now famous children with tear-drop shaped eyes on cards and letters to friends and families. Butcher and his friend 'Bill Biel' started a small company under the name of 'Jonathan & David' (J&D) to produce and sell his art on a line of cards and posters. J&D sold some greeting cards at flea markets but sales were meager and localized at first. The big break came at the 'Christian Booksellers Association Convention' in Anaheim, California. Butcher remembers being so busy that they had to have neighboring vendors come over to help him and Biel fill orders. Soon after, his work was noticed by Eugene Freedman in 1975. Freedman searched for more than a year looking for a sculptors. In 1976, Freedman finally brought the artwork to Japan.

Enesco

In 1958, Enesco was the import division for the N. Shure Company. When N. Shure was sold to Butler Brothers, the import division was spun-off. Founding President Gene Freedman took the acronym off of the N. Shure cargo, "N S Co" and phonetically named his company "EnEsCo". Thereafter, the company was sold three times, and in 1983 became a part of Stanhome, Inc. After separating from Stanhome in 1998, Stanhome immediately collapsed--leaving Enesco with all of Stanhome's assets.

At first, the porcelain figurines were sold under the Jonathan & David name, but during the mid 1980's (J&D under stamps can be found up until 1986), due to differences in business policies, Biel and Butcher dissolved Jonathan & David. Enesco took over the distributorship world wide from then on. Also around the same time, Butcher set up the "Sam Butcher Foundation" and "Precious Moments, Inc.".

Up until 1997, Enesco's sales for Precious Moments porcelain figurines continued to increase. The collectors' club started from 1980 also saw great increases in membership until then. Enesco was awarded many awards by NALED (National Association of Limited Edition Dealers) during its peak sales years. Freedman and Butcher were also awarded the "Industry Achievement Award" and the "Artist of the Year" respectively numerous times. In its highest sales year, 80% of Enesco's net sales consisted of Precious Moments porcelain figurines.

But by 2004, Enesco, Corp. posted an operating loss of $15.7 million US dollars. The sales of Precious Moments items plunged from a high of $206 million in 1996 to $55.7 million in 2004, a drop of $27.5 million from 2003. (''Carthage Press 2005'')

"Precious Moments revenues represented 22% of consolidated net revenues in 2004 compared to 33% in 2003," according to Enesco's 2004-2005 annual report.

In 2005 Precious Moments ended its business partnership and license arrangement with Enesco. Precious Moments currently oversees the distribution of its figurines and products, shipping products from its warehouses in Carthage, Mo.

Gene Freedman left Enesco in March of 2005, but has been named "Precious Moments Ambassador" by Precious Moments, Inc. There was an extravagant retirement dinner scheduled for him, but it quickly became an employment celebration after PMI's announcement.

In 2006, only a year after the departure of Precious Moments, Enesco's fourth president, Cynthia Passmore-McLaughlin (formerly of Revlon) resigned. With this, Jim Shore, the second best selling products after Precious Moments, dissolved its crontract with Enesco. Enesco's stocks fell below US $1.00 and was unlisted from the NYSE. After a few months of over the counter trading, Enesco withdrew its public offering altogether. On January 12 2007, Enesco filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.^[1]

'Historical Enesco President/CEOs'
#Eugene Freedman (retired)
#Jeff Hutsell (resigned)
#Dan Dalmolle (deceased)
#Cynthia Passmore-McLaughlin (resigned)
#Basil Elliot (current)
In 1977, the porcelain figurines were introduced to US retailers, and officially started its retail career in 1978.
Years passed and according to the trade magazine ''Gift Beat'', Precious Moments became one of the top porcelain collectible brand in the United States during the mid 1980's to 1990's.
To encourage and promote these products Internationally, Enesco developed and marketed a series of "Exclusive" Precious Moments. These products would depict inspirational cultural themes of non-Western countries. For example, Enesco created many Japanese kimono-girl figurines.

Collectors and clubs

The Precious Moments^TM Collectors' Club was founded in 1980
★ , followed by the Precious Moments^TMFan Club in the 90s.

In a 2004 report by the club headquarters, the cumulative membership was 100,000 individuals. In January of 2005, PMI reported the running total to be 200,000. This number includes members from the Precious Moments Collectors' Club (PMCC), the Precious Moments Fan Club (PMFC), and unofficial members that are simply registered as direct mail recipients in PMI's database.

Club members have established local chapters to each of these clubs. One does not have to join a local chapter to be a member. Local chapter members benefit from local sponsorship that is otherwise unavailable from club headquarters. There are even chapters in Canada. Each chapter is usually sponsored by a local gift shop selling Precious Moments figurines.

Each local chapter may also distribute their own newsletters to its chapter members. Some chapters create their own club logos and pins.

During the Enesco years, the Precious Moments Community was approved as the only official online chapter for the Collectors' Club.

As Enesco lost its license with PMI in 2005, all local chapters and international clubs have been disavowed - although still active. Since then, PMI has decided to re-evaluate its club strategies. In February of 2006 PMI began accepting registration of local club chapters in an open letter in their quarterly newsletter, ''Moments''.

''
★ There was a big 25th anniversary celebration in Hawaii in 2005. So 1980 would be the charter year.''

In popular culture

★ Precious Moments figurines are parodied in an episode of ''The Simpsons''. Ned, an avid collector of Humble figurines, which depict large-eyed boys and girls in iconic Americana settings, gets fed up with the morally bankrupt populace of Springfield and moves to the fictional Humbleton, Pennsylvania, where the figurines are produced. However, the residents of Humbleton are so uptight that even Ned doesn't meet their moral standards and he moves back to Springfield.

Precious Moments, Inc.

'Precious Moments, Inc.' (A.k.a. 'PMI') was founded in 1991 by Samuel J. Butcher and his family. The company is currently owned by two of Butcher's sons - Don, who lives in Carthage, MO, and Jon, who lives in St. Charles, Illinois.
In 1998, PMI delegated its copyright licensing function to United Media (A.k.a. 'UM'), a wholly owned subsidiary of E. W. Scripps. Because of this, between 1998 and 2005, PMI did not hold any rights to license its own intellectual property. With UM as its licensing agent, PMI licensed its property out to more than 150 manufacturers and vendors.
In July 2005, PMI became the distributor for the Precious Moments porcelain products in place of Enesco. In addition to its original licensing duties, the company's current functions are product design, marketing, warehousing, and distribution.
In January 2006, Jon Butcher stepped down as president and CEO and PMI welcomed Byron Norfleet (previously president of the Naturalizer division of Brown Shoe) as its new CEO and president.
''Corporate charters and annual reports recovered Mar 20, 2006 from Missouri Secretary of State.''

The Precious Moments Chapel

The 'Precious Moments Chapel' in Carthage, Missouri, is a theme park run by PMI. The "Chapel" itself is a structure within the park and was completed in 1989^[2]. The land it stands on is owned by the 'Sam Butcher Foundation' - therefore is personally owned by Sam Butcher and his heirs.

The main attraction of the park is the "Fountain of Angels", designed by Sam Butcher himself. The indoor attraction can propel water up to 80 feet high in sync to music, lights, and visual effects. Two separate performances are held every day from March through December.

In January of 2007, Precious Moments Inc. announced that they would discontinue many of its attractions including the "Fountain of Angels" due to financial difficulties arising from diminished numbers in paid visitors due to higher gas prices and general decline of the brand. Other closures include the "Wedding Island", "The "RV Park", "The Gallery", and "Souper Sam’s".^[3]

Artistic value

As most Precious Moments licensed products are mass-produced, their value as "art" is relatively low compared to traditional paintings and sculptures. Many critics (''see article history'') point out that the whole imagery of Precious Moments is kitsch and is intended for a market which disregards traditional artistic values. As with many other consumer goods, the big-eyed aesthetic has been a target of derision among students of traditional art.
The monetary value of Precious Moments products in the aftermarket is varied. Many of the products are resold at a lower price than the original MSRP, but in some cases, items with a higher perceived value are traded at inflated prices. The Internet auction house eBay maintains a distinct category for these collectibles.
According to many of the letters from collectors published in the club newsletters, the sentimental value behind the act of giving and receiving these figurines is more important than the perceived monetary value. Arguably, that could be said of any traditional piece of art, and there lies the paradox between supporters and critics.

See also

Official standpoints of PMI

★ Precious Moments History/Timeline

Sources

★ Best Wishes of Boca. 'About Sam Butcher'. http://www.bestwishes.net/bestwishes/absambutarof.html

★ Building a Company, and its IT, in 90 days . http://www.cioinsight.com/print_article2/0,1217,a=161677,00.asp

★ Enesco, Corp. et.al. 'Precious Moments Catalog'.

★ Enesco, Corp. Official Website. http://www.enesco.com/

★ "First shipment marks a new era for Precious Moments". Carthage Press. Jul. 6, 2005.

★ Freedman, Gene, et.al. "Interviews with Enesco employees". 1995~2005.

★ Martin, Laura C.; Jones, Carolyn (Photographer). 'Precious Moments Last Forever'. Abbeville Press. Jan. 1, 1977 [ISBN 0-89660-083-1]

★ PMI employees, et al. "Internal memorandum". 1999~2005.

★ Precious Moments Community. http://www.preciousmomentscommunity.com/

★ Precious Moments Official Site. http://www.preciousmoments.com/

★
★ Precious Moments, Inc. "Precious Moments History/Timeline". Retrieved Dec. 12, 2006. http://www.preciousmoments.com/content.cfm/precious_moments_history_timeline

Footnotes

1. Enesco files Chapter 11 Meredith Schwartz
2. Samuel J. Butcher Story
3. Precious Moments Park Changes

External links

★ Precious Moments Official Site

★ Precious Moments Company Dolls Official Site

★ Enesco Corporation Official Site

★ Precious Moments Chapel at Roadside America