Growing Through Arts^® Promotes Creativity and Confidence

Aleksandra Efimova’s love of the arts started as a very young girl growing up in St. Petersburg, Russia. She attended the renowned Art School at the Hermitage State Art Museum and received training in classical ballet, art and academics. Dance, fine arts and music became a passion of hers that has shaped her life and in turn the lives of others. In 1993, at the age of 15 she moved to the United States and settled in Chicago. In 1998, while a junior in college, she became an entrepreneur and founded her first company, Russian Pointe, which makes and sells a brand of luxury ballet slippers. In 2006, she opened the Russian Pointe Dance Boutique, the company’s flagship store located on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile.

In 2010, this Harvard Business School Alumna started a new venture, Growing Through Arts, which generates learning and exploration of the arts in children through the use of books, e-books, toys, games and smartphone applications. Inspired by the classical world-acclaimed Russian educational system, Growing Through Arts’ products are infused with the philosophy that participating in the arts can have a dynamic impact on children’s careers, educations and social lives.

The system behind Growing Through Arts combines a uniquely powerful set of learning elements to boost the mental and emotional growth of children. Efimova summarizes her work as “dedicated to sharing access to and enjoyment of the arts, and to building bridges among people of different cultures, particularly in educational, artistic and business spheres.”

Growing Through Arts has two series of learning books and materials. Ballet and music are used to teach children fundamentals like the alphabet, and expand to more complex subject matter, including an appreciation for music and learning about symphonies. The books and learning materials are beautifully illustrated and help children develop skills and strengths including:

• Creativity and Imagination
• Confidence, Leadership, and Character Strength
• Memory, Abstract Thinking, Discipline, Focus and a Wide Range of Pre-Academic Skills
• Arts Vocabulary

At a time when art education is being cut from many school curriculums, these books provide a way to nurture a child’s love of movement, dance and music. The books help open the door to a world of ballet and symphonies and foster an appreciation of the arts.

New products being introduced include pillow dolls, stage scene play sets and costumes that children can wear to match their favorite Growing Through Arts characters!

Growing Through Arts’ products retail from $7.95 to $24.95, and include play sets, activity and interactive books that appeal to a wide age range of children. To learn more, visit growingthrougharts.com. Or contact Tiffany Lawson at or call (312) 332-7200 for more information about becoming a retailer.