HAVERFORD, PA — Dori Desautel Broudy always loved drawing. Growing up it was one of her favorite hobbies. Through college, she created her family’s annual Christmas card. Yet, Desautel Broudy, of Haverford, never focused on attending art school.
The native New Englander knew she wanted to become a lawyer and play soccer in college.
“I took quite a respite from illustration for years,” Desautel Broudy said, adding that she took five bar exams the first six years she was practicing to receive law licenses in Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Connecticut. “Between 90-hour work weeks and studying and life as an attorney I didn’t have a lot of free time.”
After practicing law for 10 years, Desautel Broudy took a 10-year reprieve to raise her three children. During that time, her kids began showing an interest in art.
That and other “signs from the universe” told her it was time to transition the hobby to a profession. In 2018, she founded the Gallery of Good, through which she donates a portion of every art purchase to a charity. To date, she has donated time, artwork and funds, and developed special collections for more than 24 nonprofits worldwide, including recently raising over $100,000 for the Abramson Cancer Center.
Committed to local, Desautel Broudy works with Philadelphia-area vendors on the design and production of her “joyful and celebratory” pieces, enabling her to support as many women-owned, black-owned and minority-owned small businesses as possible.
Seeking to continue expanding her reach beyond the City of Brotherly Love, Desautel Broudy sought guidance last fall from SCORE Bucks County mentor Steve Wolfson in scaling up her business. She and Wolfson meet weekly to strategize day-to-day business operations. He’s also helped the artist create a business plan, a budget and pitch for funding, as well as building the team needed to delegate responsibilities that she had solely been undertaking, including accounting, bookkeeping and taxes.
Before owning his own company, Wolfson had started 15 businesses for major companies.
“He’s got such strong business acumen in addition to the years of experience,” she said, adding that he has helped with prioritizing tasks. “Steve has been such a critical advisor for me. We really think out loud about what kinds of businesses are best suited to sell my work. We’re very deliberate about identifying businesses that I should approach.”
Most recently, Desautel Broudy’s fine stationery is available for purchase in the Constitution Center gift shop. Her creations, available also as canvas and acrylic block, are sold in about two dozen stores nationally, including Di Bruno Bros. Four Seasons Hotel licensed her original “LOVE” artwork for World Kindness Day.
Her “first big break” came when the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts began selling her artwork in its museum store.
“I want to make sure that I’m aligning myself with like-minded businesses,” she said. “The story behind artwork is almost as important, if not as important, as the artwork itself. They’re buying art, but they’re also buying the artist.”
Wolfson is confident that together they can help continue the business’ expansion.
“She is gaining customers at a manageable pace every week,” he said. “Dori is a real pro at selling face to face with her sophisticated line of artwork. She is an excellent client to work with now and in the future and is creating a brand of success.”
As she also focuses on licensing opportunities, selling her work in more tourist attractions, and increasing direct-to-consumer sales online, Desautel Broudy said she does not miss practicing law because she never feels as if she stepped away from it.
“My husband’s a lawyer and so many of my friends are lawyers. I’m using my legal background so much more as an artist and a mother,” she said. “I like the ways in which I’m able to exercise those muscles and not work the 90-hour weeks.”
Her focus is on creating works which organically emphasize kindness, respect and inclusivity and to advocate for others in her own creative way.
“Everything I make is a projection of me as a parent,” she said. “Kids these days are confronted with so many things I never had to navigate at their age. All I want is for them to live in a happier, healthier place. Every piece has that intention behind it.”
