Pirate’s Alley

What Pirate’s Alley does

Pirate's Alley is a privately held, family-owned custom picture framing business founded in 1970 by RJ and Alvina Henrichs and headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The company operates two retail storefronts — Uptown 23rd (1700 NW 23rd St.) and Pirates Alley North (2733 West Britton Road) — and serves the Greater Oklahoma City metropolitan area through direct-to-consumer sales. Its product offering is anchored by Custom Picture Framing (using archival materials, UV-blocking glass that blocks 99% of harmful UV light, custom matting, moulding, fabric liners, fillets, and shadowboxes up to 2.5+ inches of depth) and the largest selection of Ready Made Frames in Oklahoma, spanning sizes from 2.5×3.5 photo frames up to 36×48 standard frames.

The business runs an in-house fine art printing capability centered on an Epson 9900 printer, supporting prints up to 42 inches wide on canvas, acid-free cotton art paper, and semi-gloss photo paper, and offers special-order 22k gold leaf frames from Goldleaf Framemakers of Santa Fe. Core technology is craft-and-materials based — Epson large-format printing, Truvue museum glass, Larson Juhl mouldings, Bainbridge matting — rather than software- or AI-driven, and the firm's go-to-market is fundamentally physical-store plus website plus content marketing, supported by a blog and presence at community events like the Oklahoma City Festival of the Arts.

Pirate's Alley generates revenue on a project-by-project, one-time-payment basis. Custom framing is priced by quote based on materials and complexity, with customers required to pay at least 50% in advance; ready-made frames are priced per unit (with an annual half-price sale in early January); printing is priced per job. Customer segments are horizontal — individual consumers framing personal artwork, photos, diplomas, sports memorabilia, and keepsakes as the primary segment, and a secondary segment of local artists and photographers using the print-and-frame workflow. No parent company, institutional ownership, funding rounds, or acquisitions are disclosed; ownership commentary indicates the business remains family-controlled.

Name

Pirate’s Alley

Legal name

Pirates Alley

Website

https://piratesalleyokc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Pirate's Alley is a family-owned custom picture framing and fine art printing business founded in 1970 in Oklahoma City, operating two retail storefronts that serve individual consumers and local artists with archival framing, UV-blocking glass, ready-made frames, and Epson 9900 printing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Picture Framing Services

NAICS

Art Dealers (459920)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

General Arts & Crafts Supplies Retail (CRALACAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Craft Storage, Organization & Display Retail (CRALACAJ)

Keywords

• Custom picture framing
• Ready made frames
• Fine art printing
• Archival framing materials
• Shadowbox framing

Headquarters

HQ city

Oklahoma City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Custom Picture Framing: One-time custom framing services where customers work with designers to create bespoke framing solutions using archival materials, custom mats, moulding, and UV-blocking glass. Turnaround typically takes a week to 10 days depending on materials chosen.
2. Ready Made Frames: Pre-manufactured frames sold in standard industry sizes (8x10 through 36x48) and specialty frames for photos and documents. Largest selection of ready made frames in Oklahoma.
3. Fine Art Printing: Printing services for artists and photographers using Epson 9900 printer. Prints on canvas, art paper, and semi-gloss photo paper up to 42 inches wide. Customers can also have printed work framed.
4. Specialty Framing Products: Special order 22k gold leaf frames from Goldleaf Framemakers, fabric mats and liners (silks, linens, suedes), and fillets for additional customization.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Pirate's Alley sells custom picture framing services, ready-made frames, and fine art printing from two Oklahoma City retail locations. Customers work with in-store designers to create bespoke framing using archival materials, UV-blocking glass, and specialty items such as gold leaf frames, fabric mats, and shadowboxes, with a typical turnaround of one to two weeks. The company also operates an Epson 9900 printer for giclee printing on canvas, art paper, and photo paper up to 42 inches wide.

Product overview

Pirates Alley is a local, family-owned picture framing business founded in 1970, offering a comprehensive suite of framing and printing services across two Oklahoma City locations. The core offerings consist of Custom Picture Framing (specializing in shadowboxes, needleworks, and canvas stretching with archival materials and UV-blocking glass) and Ready Made Frames (carrying the largest selection in Oklahoma with sizes from 2.5×3.5 to 36×48). The company also provides Fine Art Printing services using an Epson 9900 printer for canvas, art paper, and photo paper up to 42 inches wide. Premium add-on services include 22k Gold Leaf Frames (hand-gilded by Goldleaf Framemakers), Fabric Mats and Liners (silks, linens, suedes), and Fillets as accent pieces. Custom work typically takes a week to 10 days to complete.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Custom Picture Framing Bespoke framing service for individual customers including shadowboxes, needleworks, canvas stretching, and difficult items; uses archival materials, UV-blocking glass, custom matting, mounting, and a wide variety of moulding options, with typical turnaround of one week to ten days and 50% advance payment required.
• Ready Made Frames Pre-manufactured frames in standard industry sizes from 8x10 through 36x48, plus specialty photo frames (2.5x3.5 to 8x10) and document frames (8.5x11); styles range from contemporary to ornate to rustic, with wood and metal options; described as the largest selection of ready-made frames in Oklahoma.
• Fine Art Printing Giclee fine art printing service for artists and photographers using an Epson 9900 printer; prints on canvas, 100% cotton acid-free art paper with matte finish, and semi-gloss photo paper up to 42 inches wide; customers can also have printed work framed in the same location.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Keep It Local OKminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal business card program allowing customers to save 10% at Pirates Alley with their Keep It Local Card. Sold at the store.
• Larson JuhlcoreTechnology or IntegrationFrame moulding supplier. Products include Traditions document frames, Fotiou frames, and various fillets used in custom framing jobs.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Michaels Companies: Largest North American specialty arts-and-crafts retailer, offering ready-made frames, custom framing services, and related supplies. Competes across Pirate's Alley's ready-made and consumer custom framing lines with much broader geographic reach.
• Dick Blick Art Materials: Major specialty retailer of artist supplies, including framing materials, ready-made frames, and printing supplies. Comparable to Pirate's Alley on the artist/photographer customer segment and framing supplies merchandising.
• Hobby Lobby: National arts, crafts, and home décor retailer with a sizable ready-made frame assortment and in-store custom framing. Overlaps directly with Pirate's Alley on commodity frame sizes and decor-style offerings.
• Walmart: Mass-market retailer with a sizable online and in-store ready-made frame assortment at low price points. Competes primarily with Pirate's Alley's commodity ready-made frame sizes.

Direct peers

• Simply Framed: Online custom framing service focused on curated designer frames and easy mail-order workflow. Competes for the same custom-framing customer use cases Pirate's Alley serves, especially art prints and photographs.
• Framebridge: National direct-to-consumer custom framing company offering mail-order and in-store framing. Closest direct competitor to Pirate's Alley's custom framing service, with similar framing materials and designer-led consult experience but a far broader digital footprint.
• American Frame: Online retailer of custom and ready-made frames plus framing supplies. Competes with Pirate's Alley for both finished frames and DIY framers needing mouldings, mats, and glass.

Emerging players

• Jerry's Artarama: Independent art supplies retailer with strong online and select storefront presence, including custom framing and fine art printing. Competes for Pirate's Alley's artist-segment custom framing and printing work.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pirate%E2%80%99s-alley

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pirate’s Alley