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 Christopher Radko is the acclaimed designer of ornaments for every holiday and special occasion the calendar brings.
Christopher Radko is now in his 20th year of designing and producing keepsake ornaments, gifts and home décor for every special occasion and season that the calendar brings. His hand-made, brilliantly colored and glittered ornaments and holiday decorations adorn millions of homes, from celebrity collectors and historic residences to the house next door to yours (and perhaps yours, too). His sparkling creations have become collectors’ items and favored gifts, making a lasting “keepsake connection” among the friends and families who give and receive them in celebration of life’s milestones and memorable occasions. Christopher Radko is proud to present America’s premier collection of home holiday decorations.
It all began with a family calamity: In 1984, Christopher Radko decided that his family’s rusty old Christmas tree stand had served long enough. He replaced the stand and put their 14-foot tree in a gleaming new aluminum model. His family decorated the tree as always, with a treasured collection of over 2,000 mouth-blown, European glass ornaments. As it is for most families, their Christmas tree was a family diary with a story to go with each ornament. One week before Christmas, tragedy struck. The new stand gave way and the tree crashed to the floor, shattering almost every ornament. Many cherished memories and family traditions lay among those broken pieces, heartbroken; Christopher was determined to restore them for his family.
Trying to replace his family’s heirlooms proved to be a daunting task. Ornaments sold in the United States were, at that time, made of plastic and Styrofoam, certainly not capable of replacing the handmade treasures his family had collected over generations. The following spring, while visiting cousins in Poland, Christopher began looking for glass ornaments. While he didn’t find the treasures he was looking for, he DID find a man eager to revive the art of his great-grandfather; a tradition once thought to be lost forever.
Christopher encouraged him to recover antique ornament molds, supplied him with sketches of his own childhood favorites, and for good measure, new designs from his own imagination. Several dozen ornaments were produced for his family, but those ornaments never made it to the family tree. Instead, friends in New York purchased all of them. On his next trip abroad, he brought back more ornaments: many for his family, and some extras, which sold out, as well.
Christopher realized he had discovered something wonderful! While at his job in the mailroom of a talent agency, he spent his lunch hours going door-to-door to stores in New York City, showing his designs. Georg Jensen, a top of the line jewelry store, was his first retail account. Through hard work Christopher achieved $75,000 in sales by the end of his second year. Now in its 19th year, his company continues to thrive.
Since that first collection of 65 ornaments in 1986, Christopher has created over 10,000 designs in glass and Home for the Holidays products. His company has grown from a lone glassblower to more than 3,000 people commissioned in cottage workshops in Poland, Germany, Italy and the Czech Republic. Today Christopher Radko creations are sold in over 2,500 stores. These include retailers such as Bloomingdale’s, Lord & Taylor, Macy’s, Marshall Fields, Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue, as well as London’s legendary Harrods and Fortnum and Mason, all of whom feature the collection during the holiday season. Of the many fine independent gift shops and specialty retailers that carry the line all year long, Christopher Radko designates premier locations as Rising Star, Starlight and Galaxy Stores. These designations are based on the exemplary service and selection they provide to customers year-round. Additionally, Christopher makes appearances on HSN, where viewers have the opportunity of purchasing and participating in programs featuring product made exclusively for HSN consumers.
Christopher’s attention to quality and detail has never wavered. Each ornament still takes seven days to product. The skills of mold making, glass blowing and hand painting have been proudly rekindled by the workers abroad, many of who are the great-great-grandchildren of the original craftsmen.
Christopher retires approximately one-third of his designs annually, thus enhancing their collect ability. With each passing year, demand for the earlier ornaments rises. “Partridge In a Pear Tree”, originally priced at $38.00, has sold on the secondary market for as much as $1,000.
The popularity of his ornaments has stimulated the development of other Christopher Radko holiday home décor. The Home for the Holidays collection, first introduced in 1996, has grown to include new categories including table top Santa’s, limited edition nutcrackers, needlepoint and pre-arranged floral and wreath arrangements. Shiny-Brite TM by Christopher Radko, first launched in November 2001, continues to expand on its collection of vintage 1940s-themed accessories and ornaments.
Christopher also designs a select number of ornaments for charitable fundraising annually. “Most holidays or special occasions, and Christmas traditions in particular, are about coming together and sharing our blessings with others who may be less fortunate. It is rewarding that my ornaments can help people and extends the genuine meaning of the holidays in this way,” Christopher says. This year’s designs benefit AIDS, breast cancer, pediatric cancer, animal care, diabetes and heart disease.
Radko ornaments adorn the Bush family Christmas tree and at the request of former President Clinton and Vice President Gore, Christopher has decorated both the mantel of the White House and the entire Vice Presidential Residence. His creations have graced the Connecticut Governor’s Residence and Gracie Mansion. In addition to being featured on such programs as The Today Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Extra, The Other Half, Donny and Marie, Rosie O’Donnell and Entertainment Tonight, Christopher has won the Designers’ Challenge on HGTV. His ornaments are in the collections of Elton John, Ricky Martin, Oprah Winfrey, Robert Redford, Kim Basinger, John Travolta, Robert DeNiro, Dolly Parton, Elizabeth Taylor, Whoopi Goldberg and Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver. It was at the request of Barbra Streisand that Christopher designed and produced his first Hanukkah ornaments.
Whether his creations are for the White House, an orphanage abroad or any location in between, Christopher continues to pour his heart into his work, as he has done for nineteen years.
In 2005, Christopher is proud to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his company. Exquisite workmanship and handcrafted details are the hallmark of his premier anniversary collection. Bring warmth, color and sparkle into your home as you celebrate life’s heartfelt connections. More than just ornaments, a Christopher Radko ornament is a work of heart!
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