When patrons enter Hawaii Fluid Art, they are immersed in a dazzling art gallery and studio space filled with colorful wall art, handmade goods and the opportunity to create something spectacular. By Elice Morgenson
When patrons enter Hawaii Fluid Art, they are immersed in a dazzling art gallery and studio space filled with colorful wall art, handmade goods and the opportunity to create something spectacular. When Founder Maya Ratcliff started making art, she had no idea that the concept would become the go-to space for art lovers from all over the world less than two years later.
“My husband suggested that I needed a hobby, and in the fall of 2020, I started creating art in my garage and selling it on Facebook. People requested that I teach classes, so we converted the garage into a studio, and I started teaching. After six months, I had taught over a thousand people, and we realized that I needed a retail location. In May of 2021, we opened a studio on the Big Island of Hawaii. Soon, two well-known celebrities took my classes and told me I should franchise the concept because everyone deserves Hawaii Fluid Art in their lives,” Ratcliff explained.
After deciding to franchise the concept in 2021, Ratcliff dedicated an entire year to ensure the experience would be just as magical for each franchisee. “We didn’t launch until 2022 because we wanted to make sure that our infrastructure would be the absolute best for our franchisees. Now, we have three corporate locations open, with another opening in Las Vegas in 2023. We have two franchise locations open, with another 23 locations that have been sold in the last three months and will be opening soon. We expect to have 100 retail locations open in the next 14 to 16 months, and there are over 400 location sites picked out just waiting for franchisees,” she said.
Ratcliff attributes the brand’s success to a comprehensive business model that prioritizes franchisee growth. “We have everything from a 24-hour monitored 800 number, to online booking sites for all franchisees,” Ratcliff shared. “We have a content creator and social media manager that handles all the social media advertising for each location. We have a franchise coordinator for every 10 franchises that is a direct contact for anything they might need, and in total, we have a staff of nine people here to support our franchisees.”
In addition to its amazing franchisee support, the brand prioritizes training and opening each location. Training is completed onsite at our Dallas training center, and franchisees can bring up to three people to become certified Hawaii Fluid Art instructors. For further education and convenience, new employees can complete online training courses to become certified. However, the support does not end there.
“Franchisees are able to opt-in for our onsite support team to come and help franchisees set up and open the store. We will show up three days before you open to put the final touches on the studio and stay three days after you open to help you. We start marketing and advertising 30 days before a location opens, and we can start accepting reservations and bookings during your marketing period. The franchisee is almost fully booked for their first month by the time they open,” Ratcliff said.
Hawaii Fluid Art continues its commitment to nurturing and inspiring the human spirit, one painting at a time, with franchise opportunities available across the U.S.
Elice Morgenson