BRADENTON – Kelly Hunt grew up on Anna Maria Island and her Island-inspired creative designs appear on a line of beach towels now sold at 68 Bealls Florida stores statewide.
Hunt now lives in Bradenton with her husband, Courtland, and their son Kellan, and her parents, Scott and Karen Moore, remain longtime Holmes Beach residents.
Hunt’s beach towel offerings at Bealls Florida stores feature three different designs – sea turtles, jellyfish and a Florida map that highlights favorite Florida destinations.
Her beach towels debuted in Bealls Florida stores statewide on Feb. 20. On April 13, Bealls Florida hosted a “Meet Local Florida Artist Kelly Hunt” event at the Bradenton store at 6355 Manatee Ave. W.
During the event, Hunt was asked how it felt to have her products displayed and sold at Bealls Florida.
“It’s magical. I’m seeing my dream come true being a featured artist for a major retailer. It’s an honor to work with Bealls Florida. It’s been the most incredible experience. My towels are in all the Bealls Florida stores and online at the Bealls Florida website. I’ve been doing this for 13 years and to have recognition on a state level is really rewarding,” she said.
Her dad, Scott, said, “I’m very proud of my daughter. Growing up on Anna Maria Island and coming this far with her art and having that imagination to use our marine life and natural settings for her artwork and designs.”
Bealls was founded in Bradenton in 1915 and using local artists is a long-standing company practice.
During the meet the artist event, Bealls Florida representative Chrissy Kavanagh said, “At Bealls Florida, we’re all about Florida and living life local. Bringing in local artists to highlight their artwork on our products is something we’re really proud of and it has always been a part of our culture. Bealls Florida is more than 100 years old. We’re Florida-founded, family-owned and we’re really proud of our Florida heritage.”
PATH TO BEALLS
Hunt owns two intertwined companies: Charted Waters Florida and Painting With a Fish. At her meet the artist event, she also temporarily displayed some of her additional work and products, some of which she created utilizing a traditional Japanese art form of Gyotaku to create pressings using paint, canvas or rice paper and a real fish.
Hunt’s dad and her brother, Justin Moore, are renowned charter captains and fishing guides and many of the fish featured in her Gyotaku prints and apparel were caught on their boats in the waters surrounding Anna Maria Island.
Hunt began teaching Gyotaku painting at the Florida Maritime Museum in Cortez. She later expanded her teaching sessions to other locations and now offers private sessions and event sessions too. She began selling her original Gyotaku prints and T-shirts and other products at the Anna Maria farmers market and several other retail businesses on Anna Maria Island – including her Painting With a Fish kits that now utilize silicone fish instead of real fish.
During a recent interview, Hunt said, “I do classes with real fish but I also have silicone molds made from a casting of a fish. I teach classes with those as well because some people might not want to paint with a real fish. They turn out just as beautiful as using real fish. I got picked up by Bealls Florida because I had my products in stores on the Island, so thanks to the Island stores for carrying my products and being so supportive.
“Painting With a Fish is my original company and I then I branched out with Charted Waters Florida, working with another graphic artist. I was at an event and got introduced to a Bealls Florida buyer who looks for local artists and local products as part of their company culture. It took me about a year to get my products in their stores. It’s not an easy process,” Hunt said.
She said it was important to find the right company to manufacture and distribute her beach towels statewide and the company she selected was the Miami-based Kaufman towel company.
Hunts hopes her beach towel sales pave the way for more of her designs and products to be sold at Bealls Florida stores. She also hopes to get some of her other products in Target and Publix stores someday.
“I do different things for different stores and I try to customize them. I also hired a graphic designer to help me expand my business. Sometimes I need help bringing my ideas to fruition,” Hunt said.
Hunt traveled a varied path on her way to business success.
“My grandmother was a watercolor artist. I’m really skilled in Gyotaku art and teaching Gyotaku but I don’t view myself as an artist. I’m more of a designer. I love to design products,” she said.
“I used to work for a marketing consulting firm doing logo designs. I have a marketing background. I used to create event invitations, billboard designs and things like that. I’ve always had that creative sense, but I don’t have graphic designer background,” she said.
Hunt’s college education also contributed to her success.
“I’ve taken what I learned in college and used that in my businesses. You have to be smart and savvy as a businessperson running your own company and you have to be educated and present yourself well to get into these big stores. I look back on my life and realize school really did help me get to where I’m at,” the 41-year-old entrepreneur said.
A wide array of Hunt’s artwork, towels, apparel and other products can be found at www.ChartedWatersFlorida.com and you can learn more about her Gyotaku art and teachings at the Painting With a Fish Facebook page.
