Lunchtime Lecture: African American Fraternal Organizations in Little Rock and Arkansas, 1830-1930
Posted on: February 1, 2006
FlagandBanner.com and the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, a museum of the Department of Arkansas Heritage, co-hosted a program entitled, African American Fraternal Organizations in Little Rock and Arkansas, 1870-1930 on Monday, February 27, in the FlagandBanner.com headquarters at 800 W. 9th Street.
Blake Wintory, research and interpretation director for the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, presented a program that discussed African American fraternal organizations, including the Mosaic Templars of America, the Knights and Daughters of Tabor which were formerly headquartered in Taborian Hall, the Knights of Pythias, the Odd Fellows and the Masons. Since 1992 Taborian Hall has been home to Arkansas' FlagandBanner.com. Kerry McCoy, owner of Arkansas' FlagandBanner.com, followed up with insights on Taborian Hall and the plans to restore its third-floor auditorium. After the lecture, McCoy lead a tour of Taborian Hall. Attendees were invited to bring a lunch and soft drinks were provided.
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Arkansas Flag and Banner Celebrates 30 Years - Arkansas Business Magazine
Posted on: February 1, 2006
Arkansas Business
Arkansas Flag and Banner celebrated its 30th Birthday in 2005, and in those 30 years, this homegrown startup has expanded from a one-woman operation to a diversified national and international competitor in its industry, all while keeping its roots in the community where it sprouted. Owner Kerry McCoy was 20 years old and had $400 to her name when she quit her job selling flags for Betsy Ross Flag Girls in Dallas, packed everything up into her yellow '71 Chevy Camaro and drove home to Little Rock to start her own flag business. As luck would have it, no other local flag sellers existed in Little Rock at that time, and the country was preparing to celebrate its bicentennial, an occasion of rediscovered patriotism. To such a clear demand, she fed supply by cold calling and knocking on the doors of other businesses.
McCoy slowly expanded her sales methods, graduating from door-to-door sales to telemarketing, then to mailings and catalogs, and finally to the Internet in 1996, when she changed the name of the company to Arkansas' FlagandBanner.com. And as sales increased, she diversified her product line. To her sewing department, she added screen printing and eventually digital printing capabilities, widening the range of customized flag and banners the company offered. Along with national, state and historic flags, her company also started selling flag poles and other flag accessories. In 2001 she opened a retail store for patriotic gifts and accessories, boasting the most red, white and blue under one roof. What resulted wan an entirely new creature in her industry.
There is not really anybody like my company in the whole United States....There is no flag and banner company that is as full service as we are," McCoy said. She pointed out that none of her competitors sells traditional flags, flag poles, flag accessories, patriotic gifts, and custom flags and banners.
"It's a lot of balls in the air,' Mccoy said. Yet Arkansas' FlagandBanner.com juggles them all. The company continues to grow 10 percent every year. It did $2.5 million in sales in 2005 and was named a finalist for the 2004 Arkansas Business of the Year Ward for businesses with 25 employees or fewer.
Most of the company's sales - about 80 percent - are business to business. And with Internet sales earning 20 percent of revenue, Arkansas' Flag and Banner.com has garnered big customers from coast to coast. For example, the company has sold custom banners as large as 20 ft. by 30 ft. to art expos in California and to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.
While continuing to grow and improve its current business model, Arkansas' FlagandBanner.com is also working this year on reopening the Dreamland Ballroom located on the top floor of Taborian Hall, the historic building where the company is headquartered. McCoy hopes to restore the ballroom to the original glory it enjoyed during the '20s and '30s, when such music legends as Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald played there. In its restored state, the Dreamland Ballroom will be open to the public as an event center for rent. McCoy is currently seeking additional financing for this effort.
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Street party at FlagandBanner.com headquarters
Posted on: May 1, 2006
 Ninth Street once again became an entertainment district on Saturday, May 20 as Arkansas' FlagandBanner.com and the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center hosted "The 9th Street Block Party." In celebration of Arkansas Heritage Month, sponsored by the street was blocked off at West Ninth and State Streets and filled with musicians, artists, and food vendors, and was a lively scene for families and people of all ages.
Entertainment and activities scheduled throughout the day included:
- Jazz blues, gospel, and hip-hop musical acts
Performing artists
- Memory Booth - locals brought their stories and photos of the 9th St community which was documented on film by Dempsey Film Group of Little Rock
- Local and regional artists
- Community information from Little Rock Fire Department and MEMS Ambulance Services
- Food from Pokey D's, Margo's Diner and Vino's
- Kid's activities
- Free admission, popcorn, cold drinks and cotton candy
Ninth Street, anchored by the Mosaic Templars Headquarters Building and Taborian Hall (now home to Arkansas' FlagandBanner.com), was a thriving arts and entertainment district during the first half of the twentieth century. The modern organizations joined together to host an event that highlighted that legacy. Arkansas Flagandbanner.com offers commemorative Dreamland Ballroom t-shirts for promoting awareness of the historic dance hall.
Everyone brought their blankets and lawn chairs and enjoyed an entertaining day!
Department of Arkansas Heritage
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Flag Day is a busy day at FlagandBanner.com
Posted on: June 14, 2006
 FlagandBanner.com's president Kerry McCoy had a full day this Flag Day! Refreshing citizens' memories on Flag Day history, flag etiquette as well as showing the great patriotic home decor items available in our gift shop, Kerry started at 5:30 a.m. at local TV station KATV (ABC affiliate) for their Daybreak show. Afterwards, she rushed to Clear Channel's KSSN country radio station to chat with DJ Bob Robbins. Finally, Kerry finished up the day by appearing at the Aerospace Education Center in Little Rock with the only IMAX theater in Arkansas. She handed out miniature flags for their premier of "Fire From The Sky, A Diary Over Japan" on their large-format screens. What a day!
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Travelhost Magazine features FlagandBanner.com
Posted on: July 25, 2006
 Travelhost magazine is a publication that features traveling ideas for cities all over the United States of America. For the Little Rock issue, the magazine features Arkansas Flag and Banner as a must for shopping in the city of Little Rock.
Your visit to Arkansas' capitol city would not be complete without a stop by this one-of-a-kind patriotic gift and accessory store located in a 1916 historic building in downtown Little Rock. Find U.S., state and nautical flags, patriotic home garden accessories, toys, souvenirs, military memorabilia and more a the showroom that boasts the most red, white and blue under one roof! Our entire patriotic product line is online at www.FlagandBanner.com, show securely and conveniently from home. We also have been creating quality hand-made custom flags and banners for over 30 years.
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Giving advice to future business leaders
Posted on: October 25, 2006
 President of Arkansas FlagAndBanner.com, Kerry McCoy shares her story and expertise with business students from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. In a classroom setting with 20 attentive students, Kerry answers questions and gives advice on how to start a business, interview for jobs and have realistic expectations.
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