Episode 46
Grace sits down with glass art visionary Amy Moorefield, Executive Director of the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum of Glass, for a captivating dive into the transformational power of niche focus and community in the business of arts. Amy dishes on resilience, redefining museum missions, and making art truly accessible—all while building an environment where creativity and business thrive together.
Amy brings her signature blend of industry insight and heartfelt leadership, sharing why glass—neither liquid nor solid—illuminates more than just galleries, but entire communities. It’s an episode brimming with energy, practical wisdom, and yes, a little jazz hands magic.
Highlights:
18:23 - We're the largest paperweight displayer in the world, ranked in the top five glass museums, but we also have been accredited by by the American Alliance of Museums since 1974. And that also is something to be very proud of. And what that is, as I like to say, it's the FDA stamp of approval on anything we do.
19:25 - We're seeing more business support, and we're very grateful for it, partially because we spent a lot of time moving on to becoming a glass museum. That was a lot of work on a national level, international level, where the community that really supports this institution felt somewhat neglected in the business community.
21:27 - So they they can be challenged moments, but there's also a lot of getting to know each other for the institution, for us to get to know the business and for the business to get to know the museum and for museums to understand that this is a symbiotic symbiotic relationship.
34:18 - I think that people to this analogy, business people really need to pay attention to those culture shifts and not be on the end of the train on that, having to make those sometimes difficult decisions or changes that need to happen, but to be more proactive and really take it as a I like to use the word not challenge, but an opportunity to either reinvent your business or making those nudge moves, like becoming a glass museum and focusing really on community to really kinda harness that, trying to pay attention in a real focused way on when those changes are going to happen.
The Banking on Business podcast is aimed at helping entrepreneurs grow their businesses with practical strategies they can start using today. Hosted by Grace Bruins, Marketing Officer at Horicon Bank, each episode features an expert guest and explores ways to innovate the way you do business.