COURTESY OF JEWBELONG |
Overseeing anationwide campaign to condemn bigotry is not for the faint of heart . But for Gottesman , whom Stuart describes as brave , it ’ s the perfect calling .
THE ART OF GETTING NOTICED As agrade-schooler in Montclair , Gottesman recalls asense that she knew all her neighbors , and that she could walk to Upper Montclair by herself .“ I felt very independent , and remember having anice amount of freedom ,” she says . AtNorthwestern University , she studied business communication with an interest in how signage and branding work . After she graduated , she went into the family business and stayed there for almost 30years .
“ There are some differences in selfstorage spaces like location , lighting and safety , but the truth is , they ’ re a commodity ,” she says .“ We were selling space , soIthought ‘ This is alittle boring for customers . Let me make it more interesting with edgy , sexy , political pop-culture-focused advertising .” When friends praised her “ Cheaper than Therapy ” billboard showing an apartment dweller being squeezed out
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by stuff , she knew she ’ d hit onaformula for having fun and selling storage space at the same time .
Natural writing partners , Gottesman and Stuart created all of Edison Properties ’ advertising in-house . And the campaign got noticed . Fast Company ran astory with the headline “ This Company ’ sBrilliantly Sassy Branding Strategy Makes Yours Look Sad and Boring ,” and The New York Times weighed in on how the Mets billboard might affect fans .
“ I learned that in order to get people ’ s attention to sell astorage room or an idea , being interesting and compelling is the best way todoit ,” says Gottesman , who grew up in Montclair and Morristown ; Stuart lives in Verona . The two left Edison in2015 and launched the branding company Starch , acombination of their two first names . They soon found , though , that most clients weren ’ t prepared tobeasbold as Gottesman wanted to be , and the women ’ sfocus shifted tothe Jewish community of which they were both a part — though in different ways .
“ I ’ dalways been interested in the way Judaism looked to other people ,”
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says Gottesman , who was raised as an observant Jew . “ My husband Gary converted to Judaism and Stacy didn ’ t have much of aJewish education . That made me see things through their eyes .” Gottesman and Stuart attended the two-year Wexner Heritage Program to learn more about Judaism , receive leadership training and connect with other volunteers in the area . Upon graduating , rabbi and scholar Larry Hoffman told them “ You ’ re not going to fix Judaism on your own , but you can go out into the world and be ablessing .”
“ And that ,” says Stuart , “ was the birth of JewBelong .”
BOTH ENDSOFTHE JEWISH EXPERIENCE
Alarge part of JewBelong ’ soriginal mission istomake disengaged Jews and non-Jews feel less “ JewBarassment ,” or sheepishness because they ’ re unfamiliar with traditions ; arecent PewResearch Center study found that between 2010 and 2020 , more than six in ten Jewish unions were intermarriages .“ Most people want meaning ,( so Iwant to ) make something relevant to you so you ’ re like ‘ Oh , that ’ srelevant to life today , I ’ m
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