Let us introduce you to this week’s Open for Business featured shop.
Shop: Hen & Chicks Studio
Owner: Heidi Kaisand
Location: 101 N. Main St., Conrad, Iowa; Conrad population is 1100
Phone: 641-366-3336
Web: henandchicksstudio.com
Facebook: /henandchicksstudio
Instagram: /henandchicksstudio
Years in Business: 6 (October 2011)
Services: quilting and scrapbooking supplies, longarm machine rental, fully-equipped retreat center
Continue reading Hen & Chicks Studio
Every business owner has that dream of becoming a trendsetter in their industry, but doesn’t quite know how to get there.
How did Mark Zuckerberg create the empire today known as Facebook? How did Steve Jobs invent device after device for Apple?
Renee Mauborgne’s book Blue Ocean Strategy can’t tell you the answer, but can tell you what questions to ask to help you get there.
Within each industry, there is something known as the “Blue Ocean.” The Blue Ocean is the idea that transforms your business from fitting into the industry to standing out from the crowd and changing the status quo.
This book shows no matter what industry you’re in, there is a Blue Ocean to be found. It provides examples of people who looked at the problems around them, then had the heart to tackle a solution.
One example is with a 17 year old in Iraq who created one of the most prominent youth orchestras in the world. She set out not with a goal to become the best youth orchestra in the world, but rather to use peace as the foundation for their music, and somehow along the way created an orchestra difficult to beat.
One piece of advice Blue Ocean Strategy has is to look outside your industry to see what has worked for other sectors. If it worked for them, what’s stopping it to being effective in your own business?
Blue Ocean Strategy motivates readers to have a “today is as good as any day” mindset. Thanks to the ever changing technology around us, what wasn’t possible ten years ago can be done today.
For more information about the author and to hear more about Blue Ocean Strategy, watch this interview with Marie Forleo, creator of Marie TV.
If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.
Valerie Funk wanted to learn a hobby and make friends when she signed up for her first quilt class. Instead, the class launched her journey—and career—as an art quilter.
Funk served 10 years in the Army before becoming a correctional officer in Indiana. In 1998, she was injured in an accidental shooting and spent years enduring a difficult recovery. Ready for a career change, Funk pursued a college degree in photography and graphic design. She graduated in 2008, then took that pivotal quilt class.
“I was introduced to fabric,” said Funk, who had never sewn anything before. “It was almost instantaneous; fabric became my medium of choice.” Funk went from making a simple fence rail quilt to thinking, Hey, I can make portraits and landscapes out of this.
Funk’s ideas begin with hand-drawn sketches or graphic designs she creates on her computer. She then prints full-size patterns and uses raw-edge applique to make quilts in her iconic style.
Funk looks for fabric in a wide range of colors with a tightly-woven grain that feels silky and doesn’t fray. “I love using solids because they generally don’t have a right or wrong side.”
In 2017, Paintbrush Studios asked Funk to create art quilts using Painter’s Palette Solids. “Just like a painter, having the right color for the job is absolutely key to creation,” she said. “This line includes every color I need in all the right values and tones.” Funk appreciates the line’s true eight-grade gray scale, including black and white.
“Solids let me focus on the art itself, eliminating the clutter and confusion that sometimes come with patterned fabrics,” she said. “As a photographer, I love the appearance of monochromatic grays because they allow me to create a timeless look.”
Funk admits she “doesn’t know the first thing about the retail business,” but offers quilt shop owners feedback from the perspective of an artist who struggles to find what she needs.
“I love to see shops carry a wide variety of fabrics from different companies,” she said. Funk attributes the increasing demand for solids to, in part, the popularity of modern-style quilts featuring large areas of negative space with pops of color. She also loves walking into a shop and seeing samples in the style she wants to create. “I would like to see more art quilts hanging in quilt shops for inspiration,” she said. High quality samples challenge shoppers to try something new.
It’s the first week of April and spring doesn’t seem to be any closer. Daydreams of warmer days and a summer to-do list seem to get longer and longer, while our work sits around us. Motivation is no where to be found.
Maybe all you need is a change of scenery. Literally. The creators of Instagram and the musical Hamilton we’re both on vacations when they incepted their two brilliant ideas.
While you don’t need to go across country to strike big on something you’ve been working on, it isn’t a bad idea to pick that project up and head to your nearest coffee shop. If noise seems to be your main source of distraction, studies show that coffee shops provide the perfect amount of noise level to productivity.
And while you’re trying to optimize that productivity, leave your cell phone in the office. Another study found that even when a phone is left in a bag, just the thought of it is still more distracting than if it were in another building.
So maybe this “whole warm weather is never coming” thing isn’t as bad as we think. Cabin fever may cause boredom, but when boredom strikes, creativity reigns according to this article.
So the next time you’re bored out of your mind, try to stay there. Let your mind wander, and see where it goes. Who knows, maybe you’ll create the next best app?
If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.
American Quilt Retailer enjoyed seeing the latest Kimberbell product at Market. Listen in. If you’d like to see more videos like this, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, too!
If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.
American Quilt Retailer enjoyed having designer Patrick Lose share information about the Patrick Lose fabrics showcased at Fall Market Listen in. If you’d like to see more videos like this, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, too!
If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.
American Quilt Retailer enjoyed hearing about Kari Carr of New Leaf Stitches newest fabrics from Hoffman. Listen in. If you’d like to see more videos like this, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, too!
If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.
American Quilt Retailer enjoyed seeing how to use a pounce from Full Line Stencil. Listen in. If you’d like to see more videos like this, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, too!
If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.
American Quilt Retailer enjoyed having designer Alex Anderson share information about the Quilters Select products. Listen in. If you’d like to see more videos like this, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, too!
If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.
American Quilt Retailer enjoyed having designer Margaret Brewster Willingham share information about her Eye of the Beholder techniques. Listen in. If you’d like to see more videos like this, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, too!
In this second video, Margaret shares a demo book you can use to share technique steps to your customer.
If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.
