This comment was sent to Gifts & Decorative Accessories for publication by Małgorzata Wierzbicka, Vice President of Northstar

A message from Northstar

Here in our warehouse there is over $ 1,000,000 of new glass ornaments ordered by Rauch and produced in good faith for Rauch, despite their diversionary lawsuit. This new merchandise can be shipped immediately, even by air. Currently, for ornaments long since shipped, Rauch is in arrears in the millions, with no plan to pay. For all the new ornaments waiting to be shipped, Rauch is unwilling to guarantee payment, thereby making it too risky to ship to them.

The livelihoods of hundreds of craftsmen and their families are at stake. We think it is wrong to order ornaments and then renege on payment plans and refuse to pay. A well managed company would ensure first that it could afford to pay for the goods before placing its orders. We have been mislead.

By what appears to be a slight of hand, Rauch is suddenly making much of the prices they are being charged. This is not the real problem for Rauch. They are not being overcharged. Their prices are fair and consistent with the intricate work and artistry required. Each year, and from before they even purchased Christopher Radko, Rauch has seen the price lists, accepted them and calculated the prices into their budget. Rauch has showed their machine made ornaments at the Frankfurt gift fair and had ample opportunity to comparison shop and choose other producers. Prices for our products have been acceptable to European customers and even to prestigious American customers such as Roger’s Gardens and Nordstrom’s. Adding in that the American dollar has steadfastly been falling and loosing value close to 50%, Rauch’s claims are all the more unbelievable. This is an astounding and unjust turn of events. The remarkable talent and many years of hard work of our artists is in on the verge of ruin. It makes no rational business sense. Unfortunately, because of Rauch and its principal owner Blackstreet Capital’s combined unwillingness to negotiate fairy and pay their bills, we have no choice but to file for bankruptcy protection. We can only hope that other companies that Rauch does business with are not similarly affected.

It is not too late for shipments to be sent, even if at least by air. To be clear, we encourage people to buy ornaments from Rauch, as they are truly beautifully made by us. If Rauch remains so incredibly unreasonable, however, then it looks like it will be a hard Christmas for a brand that has brought so much joy and fine artistry to homes across America.