Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebekah Kaufman.
Rebekah, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Ever since I was a child, I’ve been fascinated with the Teddy bears, dolls, and soft toys produced by the Steiff Company of Germany. This company is best known for inventing the jointed Teddy bear at the turn of last century, and is still in business today.
My grandmother was a collector, and she passed on this love to me. In 2008, blogging was really beginning to take off. I love to write, so I decided to start a blog. After much consideration, I chose vintage Steiff as my topic. I blogged weekly on an interesting Steiff find, event, or company happening. After 10 years, I’m posted over 500 articles. My blog can be found here: https://mysteifflife.blogspot.com.
Within a few months of starting the blog, I started getting a lot of email inquiries about vintage Steiff, as well as people offering collections for sale. I knew I was onto something, but could not figure out what to do next. Then it dawned on me that I could open my own Steiff store and consultancy to monetize my passion. I researched online platforms, and decided that Ruby Lane was the best place to list items. I now offer 300-400 gorgeous vintage Steiff items at any given time. You can find my store here: https://mysteifflife.blogspot.com
As a result of all of this, I also began to receive speaking engagement invitations from around the world, as well as requests from major publications to write features and editorials about vintage Steiff. This work has expanded to include retainer and project work with several major auction houses, private collection management, and
affiliations with antique and collectible organizations. And yes, this all equals a full-time job – and more!
Employment wise, I am the happiest and luckiest woman in the world! I do what I love, and I love what I do.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The road for the most part has been smooth. I am very fortunate that my passion/business is quite novel and visually interesting and playful. So it is not hard to “sell” or challenging to get publicity. The biggest challenge is constantly finding outstanding new inventory for my clients, this is a never ending quest. But the hunt is fun and rewarding at the same time.
Steiffgal’s Vintage Museum Marketplace – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Steiffgal’s Vintage Museum Marketplace is a webstore is dedicated to bringing you only the finest rare and collectible Steiff treasures. I wouldn’t sell anything that I wouldn’t welcome in my own Steiff collection, which numbers north of 1,600 vintage items!
My store specializes in Steiff bears, dolls, and animals mostly from the c. 1905-1970 time frame. Every item is personally inspected, cleaned, and cataloged – and comes with the “Steiffgal seal of approval.”
My store, started in 2010, is the largest online shop dedicated to vintage Steiff. I am extremely proud to say that in 8 years of doing business, I’ve had less than 5 returns. The store is known for extremely personalize service, fantastic merchandise, and blink-of-an-eye shipping speed. Every item is shipped with a “goodie bag” of treats and toys to make the buying experience even more sweet and memorable.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
From the retail perspective, success is when a customer writes that the item has arrived, and is even better than described.
From a thought leadership perspective, success is when I receive an invitation to speak at a meeting or convention, or to contribute a feature article to a print or online publication.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.rubylane.com/shop/steiffgal
- Phone: 617-955-7215
- Email: steifflife@gmail.com
- Other: https://mysteifflife.blogspot.com
Image Credit:
All from author’s collection.
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
