We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nelli Garibyan a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Nelli, thanks for joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

My background is sales and marketing. I graduated with a degrees from Boise State University in marketing and my first job out of college was advertising sales. This position taught me a great deal about business. From there I bought my first company and grew it for 5 years, I sold the business for a 3.5 multiple and went on to buy the next company. The next business I owned for 4 years and sold for a 4.5 multiple. From
There I took some time off and traveled the US with my husband and dogs. While on the road I was approached by my father who is a very talented artist to open an art gallery and we did. A very small humble space. It was a good proof of concept. For 2 years we ran Idaho Art Gallery from this location. In March of 2024 our old lease was up and we found a much larger, more traditional gallery space with tall ceilings and a large open floor plan and took the leap of faith to go from small proof of concept to a substantial investment in the arts. I have been thrilled to work with many wonderful artists and alongside my father in this new venture. My mother is also involved on the back end. I currently have several consulting contracts as well but find the art business to be quite intriguing and more challenging than other businesses I have owned or consulted on.

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.

I described my background in the previous questions but a little more about the gallery. We have a small stable of artists that are with us year round as well as featured or guest artists that we rotate every 2 months.

During this journey I and one other gallery created an Art Guide publication that highlights local arts organizations to help promote the arts to our local community.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

My background is in marketing so I find myself applying normal marketing tactics to promote the art gallery. This has served me well but the art world tents to need something extra and that something extra is a white glove personal relationship. Once we outlined the process for following up and maintaining a professional relationship with our collectors our marketing strategy became Much more elevated and refined.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

The best source of new clients for us in folks that are new to the area. We target individuals that have large new homes and need to fill their walls with original art that compliments the stature of their new property.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Idahoartgallery.com
• Instagram: Idahoartgallery
• Facebook: Idahoartgallery