Our Story
About DEMDACO
We at DEMDACO believe every product creates a conversation. We hope to participate in the meaningful moments of your lives. We don't create those moments — we aspire to make them a little better. We want to be there in times of comfort, love and joy. We strive to Lift the Spirit in you, in each other and in our communities.
Our Story
Pronounced dem-day-koh, and named for our founders Demi and Dave, for over 25 years, we’ve designed and curated purposeful gifts that help Lift the Spirit - in times of celebration, when comfort is needed or just to put a smile on someone's face. These handcrafted artisan gifts are created to nurture goodness, support family and friends, and encourage us to inspire others… and ourselves. It started in 1991 when Demi and Dave created DD Traders while in Hong Kong. After a few years, they moved back to the United States while still managing DD Traders. Born out of a love and interest for the gifting industry, in May of 1997, DEMDACO was founded. Demi and Dave contacted three artists and asked if they’d want to help start a gift company—and the rest is history! After a few years, Willow Tree® launched and nothing has ever been the same. It has been the #1 gift line in the industry since 2000. Within the last few years, we’ve expanded to be consumer facing, not just wholesale! We’ve received awards, designed thousands of heirloom-quality, artisan products and tried to give back to the community in all we do. It’s been a wonderful 25+ years, and we can’t wait to keep growing and lifting spirits together!
Our Promise
Success to us isn't measured by profit. We're successful if we've made your day a little bit better. All of our products are touched by human hands. Each product is thoughtfully and purposefully curated. Every product is designed and created to Lift the Spirit. If, for any reason, you are not happy with your purchase, please contact customersupport@demdaco.com
Lift the Spirit
Our mission to Lift the Spirit essentially means we’re always striving to uplift our communities through pleasant interactions, by lending a helping hand or through other charitable acts such as donations. Our endeavor to Lift the Spirit starts in our own halls, offices and meeting rooms. If we don’t feel a little comfort, love and joy in the workplace, it will be evident in the products we make and the way we engage with our community.
ArtLifting
At DEMDACO, we strive to lift the spirit in all we do, so we're overjoyed to collaborate with ArtLifting as our missions and values greatly align. Co-founder, Liz Powers, worked as a social worker running art groups in Boston when she discovered that a lot of the quality art being produced in these shelters and disability centers was being thrown away or left to collect dust. A common phrase she heard while working in these groups was, “Liz, I want an opportunity, not a handout.” So she started ArtLifting! DEMDACO is proud to partner with ArtLifting to bring this collection to a broader audience.
Giving & Lift the Spirit Days
How do we live out our Lift the Spirit mission? Once a year, DEMDACO hosts Giving Day! Our DEMDACO family takes the day off and goes out to volunteer at various charities such as Wayside Waifs, Veterans Community Project, Habitat for Humanity and many others. We also provide our employees with 40 paid hours of Lift the Spirit time off for mission trips, helping at schools or other volunteer opportunities of their choice.
Children’s Mercy Hospital
Since 2011, DEMDACO has brought the gift of giving to kiddos at Children’s Mercy Hospital, Kansas City through our pop-up Holiday Shop. Every December, we strive to empower children who haven’t had the chance to shop for gifts by creating a store filled with our heartfelt products and letting them ‘shop’ with DEMDACO Dollars. We've also partnered with this amazing organization to raise money for these brave kids. We're grateful for our partnership with Children’s Mercy Hospital and look forward to lifting more spirits together!
Our Culture
We strive to foster an environment where work is not just a job. Our mission to Lift the Spirit supports a holistic approach so careers can include opportunities for colleagues to pursue and nurture their personal and community interests in relation to the values we hold dear. We believe there is more to work than bottom lines and deadlines.
By Skilled Hands
DEMDACO is an artist-driven brand. We partner with over 100 creative and passionate artists who express themselves through a wide variety of styles and designs. These artful gifts touch our hearts and lift our spirits.
Made With Love
We are proud that our artisan gifts are 100% handcrafted by skilled hands overseas in factories run by carefully-selected manufacturing partners. With keen attention to details, these masterful craftspeople take great care in bringing an artist’s vision to life – from each hand-sewn thread on a Giving Bear® nose to the most subtle paint stroke on a Willow Tree® figure.
The Bow on Top
The art of gift giving would not be complete without a pretty ribbon. That’s why we intentionally package all of our high-quality products.
Our packaging includes two unique details: 1. Bookmarks: intended to provide moments of inspiration far-surpassing the initial opening of the gift. 2. Postcards: we receive hundreds of handwritten postcards a month detailing how our products are liftings spirits and providing comfort, love and joy. We treasure these postcards and keep them in a special scrapbook and read them over and over — we’re not joking! We’re honored to hear your stories and hold them close to our hearts.