Many who grew up in the 80s and 90s are quick to associate the nostalgia of heading back to school with the bright and cheery supplies designed by Lisa Frank. The notoriously private artist is best known for crafting lunchboxes, stickers, toys and trapper keepers covered in dolphins, unicorns, pandas and other adorable critters that decorated classrooms for decades. Before she rose to fame, Frank grew up in Michigan’s Bloomfield Hills (one of America’s wealthiest cities), the daughter of a higher-up in the automotive industry who supported her creative pursuits.
“My dad was an art collector, my mom had a little kiln in our basement and we would make pottery. I think from about age five on, they sent me to art classes, and I was a huge colorer. HUGE. I think to keep me quiet, they would bring the coloring books and crayons, and I would fill up the books,” Frank told Urban Outfitters in a rare interview. She went on to attend Cranbrook Kingswood School with Mitt Romney, then headed off to the University of Arizona where the mother of two found continued success as an artist. Not only did she earn $3,000 in a student-run art show, but Frank also turned a profit from buying Indigenous-made pieces from Arizona locals and selling them at a higher price back in Michigan. By age 20, her Sticky Fingers jewelry line was being sold at Neiman Marcus and Bloomingdale’s; just five years later, Spencer’s Gifts gave Lisa Frank her big break with a check for $1 million.
Having wealthy parents to back her certainly didn’t hurt the businesswoman, but in the long run, her company couldn’t stand the test of time. Though her products still invoke smiles, today, more people are curious about the downfall of a brand that’s so heavily imprinted in pop culture nostalgia. Those who still have questions about the rumors and scandals surrounding the embattled CEO and her ex-husband might find the answers in Amazon Prime Video’s four-episode documentary, “Glitter & Greed: The Lisa Frank Story.”
What Happened To Lisa Frank’s Company?
Frank launched her company in 1979 when she was just 24 years old; at the time, she designed colorful stickers from her family’s guesthouse. As she poured into her business, the entrepreneur found love with James Green, who she married in 1994. The couple had two sons – Forrest and Hunter Green – but ultimately divorced in 2005. As Jezebel notes, Frank’s ex-husband was allegedly an “unfaithful monster with a cocaine problem” who some employees feared would “destroy the company.” James was CEO and co-shareholder before their separation, but Lisa ultimately took control of the ship as their relationship crumbled.
During their divorce, court documents revealed that Lisa Frank Enterprises had generated $1 billion in revenue since its 1979 inception. Additionally, shareholder distributions to Frank and Green totaled more than $100M throughout their decade-long marriage. While they saw great success in the ’80s and ’90s, the family-friendly enterprise saw a massive dip in the 2000s that they couldn’t recover from. “They could have caught on with the hipster market, but in order for a company to really turn a corner in those kind of things, they need compassionate leadership and people who appreciate and can nurture talent. They didn’t have either of those,” a former illustrator named Jacob told Jezebel in a 2013 interview. To add insult to injury, the ex-staff member compared LFI HQ to “an abusive, alcoholic home.”
Former Employees Speak Of Total Turmoil At HQ
Despite the happiness their designs brought to customers, employees of Lisa Frank recount many negative experiences working under Green and his ex-wife. “The office was a place of silence and co-workers were not allowed to speak to one another. The management secretly (and illegally) recorded phone calls,” Jezebel’s exposé notes. “The penalty for any violations ranged from verbal abuse to name-calling to screaming to automatic termination to even more bizarre restrictions.” Once, when Green found out someone left work ten minutes early, he allegedly instructed the warehouse manager to put chains and padlocks on the doors so “the staff can’t escape.”
Ironically, the outside of Lisa Frank’s Tucson warehouse (opened in 2012) was painted bright, vibrant colors to match her designs, but what happened on the inside failed to reflect that same emotion. Besides their failure to deliver on promised severance packages and unemployment benefits (leading to several civil judgments against LIF over the years), the company was also called out for failing to pay for $4M worth of work completed on HQ.
In 2013, the building and land were listed for lease or sale at a reduced price of $13.25M; the listing agent at the time noted that LFI was “still operating inside the facility but not at full capacity.” While she once employed an impressive 350 people, Frank reportedly had just six when her warehouse was put on the market. As Distractify notes, extreme turnover is linked to poor management by those with first-hand experience. “I don’t think [they] have a lot of business acumen. I don’t think they ever did. I think Lisa’s parents [funded the start of] her company. She’s an artist, not a business person,” an ex-staffer referred to as Karen told Jezebel. However, Lisa Frank’s executive assistant Jackie Gambrell refuted these claims, calling them “unkind and untrue.”
What Is Lisa Frank’s Net Worth?
She might not be bringing in the same revenue she once was, but according to Celebrity Net Worth, Frank has an estimated value of $200M. At her company’s peak, the Michigan native was earning an astounding $60M annually, but by 2013, this dropped to $2.3M. As of 2024, all LFI retail stores are closed and products are hard to come by, living mostly in the homes of ’80s and ’90s memorabilia collectors. With Prime Video’s new documentary exposing her downfall, it’s hard to say whether Lisa Frank can ever make a comeback, but one thing’s for sure – her impact and designs will never be forgotten.
