Good Morning Everyone!
What can I say, other than THANK-YOU! When I started my business I didn't have any idea what I was doing (I still don't lol), but I did know that St. Albans needed a yarn shop. It wasn't long before I realized I had hit the jackpot. I was so fortunate to encounter some of the nicest people that shared my love of knitting and yarn. My first contact occured about 6 weeks before I opened, I reunited with an acquaintance who just happened to be the rep for Berroco and Brown Sheep. I remember calling my friend Liz and asking her for Andra's phone number because I was thinking about opening a yarn shop. Without hesitation she gave me her number and I proceeded to call Andra to set up an appointment. I asked her if she remembered who I was and she laughed and said, "Of course I do!" We'd met while I was living in Colorado when she came out to visit our friend Liz. I never thought that our intial encounter so many years ago would reconnect us, I also never thought I would actually ever open a yarn shop.
Much of my success can be attributed to the kindness of others and the community that I belong to. Many of you remember my short lived, first location inside Bayberry Cottage with Sharon. All I could think was it's the perfect place to dip my toes without completely diving in head first. Sharon had cultivated a lovely shop geared towards women, it was such a wonderful opportunity for me and I will be forever grateful to her. I immediately was given an audience, and even if they weren't interested in yarn, chances were, they knew someone who was, nothing like word of mouth. Within 6 months I moved across the street to take over the back section of the Willow Tree at the Ralston Building more than doubling my shop. I was so excited to occupy that space, it's one location I looked at when I started researching properties to rent. Little did I know that a year and a half after my move, I would be taking over the entire space. I won't lie, I completely freaked out for a lot of reasons, but luckily I landed on my feet and my business continued to grow.
2020 hit and things started to change, and I can honestly say now, it was for the better. The scaffolding that went up around my building from January-May just about destroyed my business. Then COVID forced me to close down in March, talk about hanging on by my fingernails. Thankfully my lease was up and it helped me make the decision to move the business to my home. I was extremely nervous about my future, the world was in complete chaos, countries were shutting down, products weren't being manufactured, shipping was at a standstill, OMG!!! What more??? After a small pity party and completely binge watching the entire Mad Men series, I decided that my business was going to survive, why? Because I had the best customers EVER! I rehauled my website, made shopping available by appointment, hosted Zoom Stitch and Bitch and eventually reopened. All the while remembering the words of my mother, "That which doesn't kill you, makes you stronger." Well, here I am on the other side of one of the most challenging years in business and thankfully with all of you still by my side, THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU!!!
I am really excited to be celebrating 10 years doing something I absolutely love. I know that many of my Stitch and Bitch Regulars are away on vacation and unable to attend tomorrow evening's festivities. I hope that lots of you will stop by to have some cake and champagne and celebrate this wonderful milestone with me. We will be meeting from 6-7:30 at the shop, I really hope you can join in the fun. Make it a great day and I'll see you soon!
Katy
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