Who We Are
In the beginning...
In 1996, young entrepreneur Mark Timm owned 3 successful stores in Maryland and decided it was time for a manufacturing company to treat retailers like THEY wanted to be treated. This philosophy was met with instant success from retailers nationwide for simply making a quality product at a fair price and then ship it within 24 hours.
These simple core beliefs and strategies helped Cottage Garden double its sales every year from 1996-2001 and soon became the #1 music box manufacturer in the United States.
And then...
In the fall of 2008, Cottage Garden was acquired by another gift industry company and continued to develop all its products in-house from concepts proprietary with nearly all of its products centered on artwork and sentiment.
Cottage Garden has always been a company dedicated to a family of employees. In 2016 through confidence and love of the company Mark Timm led a team in repurchasing Cottage and became an employee owned company.
And now...
In 2018 Dickson’s Gifts acquired Cottage Garden, which was a natural fit. Steve Vandivier, President of Dicksons, believes that both companies share the same philosophy in business, as well as the desire to continue to present quality products and expand lines to offer a full array of new products. One of those expansions is Elanze Designs, a brand that specializes in candle warmers, diffusers, fashion, and home décor.