We recently connected with MICHELLE RISBY and have shared our conversation below.
MICHELLE, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
During the stay-at-home orders due to COVID-19, I looked for activities we could do as a family that did not include monitors or screens like many parents. With a passion for puzzles since childhood, I wanted to share that with my family. Still, I wanted designs more culturally relevant to us. I quickly realized that the puzzles in the marketplace neither satisfied my desire for subject matter nor aesthetics.
The author and poet Toni Morrison said, “If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, you must be the one to write it.” So, Pieces of Us by Us was born!
Our stories are vital but often not prioritized. Loving Us and our culture, Pieces of Us by Us tells Our stories through Black Art by Black Artists. Passionate and imaginative artists are sharing a little piece of themselves through diverse and contemporary images and artistry. These artists become the Pieces of our Premium Puzzles, made from Cultural Fine Art by Us and For Us though all are welcome.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
Loving Us and our culture, Pieces of Us by Us will tell Our stories through Black Art by Black Artists.
Passionate and imaginative artists are sharing a little piece of themselves through diverse and contemporary images and artistry. These artists become the Pieces of our Premium Puzzles, made from Cultural Fine Art by Us and For Us.
Pieces Of Us By Us is a company that was created to make puzzles from beautiful and original pieces of art from the work of some of the dopest, most talented black artists around the world. Our stories and lived experiences matter, but it’s also about who is telling them. Our history is vibrant, but it is also jagged and not perfect. We can be found in every inch of the most significant movements and innovations worldwide, and these puzzles aim to tell that story.
The whole idea about representation is that it opens doors. It gives a community who recognize themselves in those stories something that they want and need. It also opens doors for empathy and understanding among societies at large. The promise of improving representation is that more voices will be heard, and more people will begin to learn to respect other lives and experiences beyond their own. And for that reason, Pieces Of Us By Us makes Puzzles of Black Art by Black Artists.
We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process./
Starting in April of 2020, the pandemic was crazy! Stores and websites everywhere were sold out of puzzles and board games. Because of this and COVID shut-downs, manufacturing has slowed to a crawl in the US. Most of the big names wouldn’t touch me because my orders weren’t big enough or told me to try back in the second quarter of 2021. I started researching overseas and probably contacted over 50 manufacturers, ordered about 25 samples, and finally found some vendors that I felt had the quality product I was looking for. Lead time for production still took over 4 months from final approvals to delivery here in the US. Working with overseas vendors is difficult because they are working when I am sleeping and vice versa. And sometimes there is a language barrier that can make some things get lost in translation. I was told no so many times; it was hard to keep moving forward. But I kept going. I reached out to other small puzzle companies on Facebook and Instagram, who gave me encouragement and advice. I spoke to a gentleman at a US puzzle and gaming company who, even though he told me he could not help me this year, don’t give up because he felt I had something. It has been one hell of a ride, and I am just getting started.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
I am a software & web developer by day and a soon-to-be puzzle mogul by night and weekends. I make puzzles of black art by black artists. When I started this endeavor, I found a small number of black-themed puzzles that were not made by black artists. I love puzzles but wanted puzzles that looked like me and mine. Made by me and mine. When I decided on a name for my company, some cautioned that the name was a “little in your face,” but that was the Point! I wanted it to be known that we have a place in this billion-dollar industry. That we can represent and show up and show out! That our culture, voices, point-of-views, wants, and desires matter. That we matter. So my brand, in a nutshell, is I make puzzles of black art by black artists. Period. Pieces Of Us By Us is where puzzles and cultural fine art come together.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.piecesofusbyus.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/piecesofusbyus/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/piecesofusbyus
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-risby/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/piecesofusbyus
- Other: TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@piecesofusbyus?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
Image Credits
Emmanuel Ignatius, Cbabi Bayoc, Jennifer Elaine, DJ Spinderella