After 15 years of touring the globe with A-List pop-stars and rock and roll legends, Lesley Mortimer-Wallace, founder of Precious Metal Design, stumbled into a niche market that was destined to bring a sparkle to the stage.
“Precious Metal Design started by total accident when I was touring with Def Leppard as the wardrobe and dressing room manager. I was always trying to find creative ways to make the dressing rooms cuter and unique for the artist and would typically stop at craft stores to buy supplies. One day in particular, I bought some glue and plastic rhinestones and once I got back to the dressing room, the idea struck me to glue the plastic rhinestones to the Kleenex boxes, mirrors and frames. When Vivian Campbell (guitarist for Def Leppard) asked if I could bedazzle his Les Paul guitar, I gave an excited ‘YES’ and got right to work. Since that time, I’ve gone on to bedazzle microphones, microphone stands, amplifiers, banjos, keyboards, guitar straps, clothing, headphones and the like with Swarovski Crystals.”
As the demand for bedazzled musical equipment and accessories grew, Mortimer-Wallace found herself caught between being on the road as well as running Precious Metal Design from wherever she was in the world at any given time.
“I started receiving loads of calls from artists’ Production Managers (or Managers) for artists in the pop world, country world and rock and roll legends alike. Each artist had very specific color and design requests and I did everything in my power to accommodate each order. As first time (and repeat!) orders grew, I realized I needed to revolutionize my bedazzling process to better accommodate the artist.”
Just like with any creative project, a lot of trial and error ensued before Mortimer-Wallace discovered the perfect solution for her ever-growing clientele.
“For artist that have big productions and multiple costume changes, or for artists that are just starting out that don’t have as big of budgets, I wanted all of my artists to have the freedom to change their microphone design and colors at any given time during their set without having to have 10 different microphones on hand. So I developed a sturdy microphone sleeve that could be swapped out from the microphone in 20 seconds. It was such a simple idea that also allows the artist to keep the sleeves even when they get a new microphone. And when I launched my microphone sleeves, they became an overnight success!”
With microphone sleeves in hand, Mortimer-Wallace approached her good friend and fellow music industry veteran, John Gusty of Welby Street Press. From there, Gusty knew just the person to introduce Mortimer-Wallace to: Product Crew Executive, Stacy McGuire.
“I originally did not have any desire to go mainstream with Precious Metal Design because it is important to keep my brand standards high and my clientele elite. But I knew I needed to have more than just a stash of microphone sleeves on hand. After speaking with McGuire about Precious Metal Design and my microphone sleeves, he strongly advised me patent my microphone sleeve, setting me up with his legal advisor so I can move forward in this direction and protect my concept and creation. I am simply delighted by the great support I received from McGuire and the Product Crew team and look forward to more creative endeavors in the future.”
Thank you to Precious Metal Design for sharing your story with us! Ready to get started on your project? Contact us today!
