Among the stalls of Madison Public Market, Judy McNeal displays her work consisting of jewelry, charms, eyeglass holders, and name tags, all magnetic.
The creator of QB’s Magnetic Creations prides herself on the versatility and uniqueness of her craft.
The name QB’s was in honor of McNeal’s mother, Qubie.
“When they asked me about the name QB’s, it’s a really big focus,” she said. “It keeps me grounded and focused in my why.”
McNeal began creating magnetic pieces in 2007, when she fashioned a magnetic name tag as an alternative to other kinds. She found pins can damage clothes and lanyards can get in the way. This was the start of her magnetic journey.
In 2009, she saw more demand for her product and expanded towards magnetic charms.
“I made something for myself,” said McNeal. “People loved it, so then it allowed me to fill that void.”
Along with the unique product, she engineered her own way to display them, building her display cases out of wood, metal and velvet.
The business owner sources her own jewelry, then processes the pieces and magnetizes them. Additionally, she does custom orders on personal jewelry such as wedding accessories.
One of her popular creations is the jewelry string, a chain with a magnetic charm on each end. The vision for it came to her in the night and the next morning she drafted three designs. They sold out “like that” at her next event, she said.
In this journey, she experimented with her business on Etsy but ultimately turned to other avenues to preserve her mother’s name.
“They’re going to say Etsy and I wanted them to say Qubie because it means a lot to me,” said McNeal.
Her business isn’t a hobby for her; sharing her work in her mother’s memory is her goal.
When McNeal was accepted to the MarketReady Program in 2018, she was excited to take the next step for her business by preparing for the Madison Public Market with the program’s mentors and learning from other markets in the Midwest.
When quarantine struck, many businesses struggled and the thought of the public market was delayed, but McNeal said she never gave up hope.
At last, when the Madison Public Market was back on track to open to the public, she was prepared to make the space her own.
“When they came to me, I put this together, my vision,” she said. “I wanted something classy. I didn’t want to just throw together boards to display. I had to get very creative, but I was pleased with it and people love it.”
Now, after working full-time during the day, she comes out to the market in the evening to sell her magnetic works. “I’m here because I love what I do,” she said.
McNeal takes a lot of inspiration from her customers’ feedback. Their suggestions and questions inform the new uses and ideas for her product.
Art runs in the McNeal family and has touched the Madison Public Market beyond just business.
The Market’s mural containing a person with a large afro with pink and orange flowers framing their shoulders was the work of McNeal’s granddaughter, Shantiana McNeal. She created the original design and brought it to McNeal in 2021.
The art was selected by an art teacher and was expanded on by a team of other Madison kids. Since then, the piece has been presented as a mural downtown and on an exterior wall of the Madison Public Market.
Moving forward, she plans on spending many more years hosting QB’s Magnetic Creations at the Madison Public Market and would consider getting a new space in the future.
In addition to finding QB’s at the Public Market, you can see more of her work on her website.
