Popular Paint-And-Sip Art Studio Franchise Under New Ownership In Stamford

STAMFORD, CT — Longtime resident Nicole Sandford has been a customer at Pinot's Palette of Stamford, the paint-and-sip art studio franchise, since it opened in 2013 at 25 Harbor Point Road.

Sandford's home is filled with artwork from various outings to the studio, whether for kids' birthday parties or corporate outings.

The studio offers art classes for all ages, and features a variety of soft drinks to go along with wine, beer, craft cocktails/mocktails and gourmet coffee for adults to enjoy while they're crafting their masterpieces.

Sandford now leads the franchise location as the new owner, having purchased the studio in July.

After spending more than 30 years in the corporate world, first as a partner at global consultancy, Deloitte, Sandford inquired about the availability of Pinot's Palette of Stamford several years ago, but it wasn't for sale.

She then became CEO of a publicly-traded cancer diagnostic company in 2022, and when she retired a second time last year, she found out the studio was available.

"I jumped on it," she said. "I had a long career in corporate and had amazing opportunities, but nothing at all like this, so this is something completely different. It's so fun to be in a place where people come in in a good mood and leave in an even better mood. It's pretty awesome."

Since she acquired the business, Sandford has focused on reimagining some of the offerings and the cocktail menu.

"One of the main things we've done is we've increased the number of offerings that we have for some of our favorites," Sandford said, highlighting the "Chunky Knit Blanket" class in which attendees learn how to hand-knit a throw blanket.

Other popular offerings on the upcoming schedule include Project Pet, a class in which attendees can paint their pet, as well as Black Light classes.

For the holiday season, Sandford said she plans to offer guests candle-making classes, as well as Christmas-themed painting classes. There are Friendsgiving events scheduled over the next week.

The Stamford location has expanded its "open studio" offerings to include self-guided paintings anytime it's open. Guests can also go for Sunday brunch or Wednesday happy hour.

The studio is available for private events such as corporate outings, birthday parties, school trips, bachelorette parties, baby and bridal showers in the studio or at home, the office, club or other off-site locations.

The new cocktail menu includes top-shelf liquor and hand-mixed craft cocktails, as well as expanded nonalcoholic offerings and a brand new gourmet espresso bar.

Sandford raised her family in Stamford with her husband, Dan, an Army captain who served as the grand marshal for this year's Stamford Veterans Day parade.

Sandford spoke about her affinity for Stamford and being a small business owner in the city.

"I just love Stamford. I've lived here a long time. It's just such a great community, and it's fun to meet all kinds of different people," she said.

"We have such a wonderful diversity in this city, so in any given class you just don't know who is going to be there. I meet great people every night, they meet each other. It's kind of a beautiful microcosm of the city itself, and I just enjoy so much getting to know different people."

Pinot’s Palette Stamford is open everyday for private events, and offers adult classes every day of the week except Tuesday.

Get to know Sandford and her family at a special "Meet the New Owners" paint-and-sip class on Nov. 29

For more information and the current events calendar, visit the Pinot’s Palette Stamford website.