Our Story
It has been quite a journey for Kelly and I over the last 14 years. One of the biggest decisions we have ever made together was to go into a retail business, something neither of us had considered previously. We believed that Kelly and her love for everything sewing and quilting along with my entrepreneurial business spirit seemed a perfect match when we heard of a downtown sewing machine and fabric sales retail business (The Sewing Gallery) for sale.
The Sewing Gallery had been in existence since 1980, owned by Herb & Shirley Wildeman and for nine years previous to that as the White Elna Sewing Centre with Bill Harris and his wife at the helm. With 36 years of history behind the store, we felt it was a venture worth exploring. On July 1, 2004, we jumpted in with both feet!
The first order of business was to give the shop a bit of an updated look so we ripped out all the carpet at the 387 Graham Avenue store and put down a hardwood laminate to give the store a nice earthy feel and painted the walls. Secondly, we wanted customers to have a more panoramic view of the fabric so new fabric cabinets were built (they turned out very well if I do say so myself). Then over time, we added display furniture to match (Kelly’s choices) and reflect the pine look throughout.
Based on customer demand, In the winter of 2005 / 2006, we slowly starting bringing in more quilting cottons and clearing out fashion fabrics. On our 2nd anniversary, we changed our name and moved our store to its new location, the 2500 square foot shop we now have at 661 Pembina Highway. We are quite settled in at this new location; however, Kelly still changes the shop around periodicall to keep it fresh and interesting.
Kelly, I and our staff strive to meet the quilting and sewing needs of everyone that walks through our doors. We sincerely wish to bring the best possible products, services and experiences to you when you shop at Quilt as Desired! Please come and visit us ---- we'll have the coffee on (and of course it's Tim Horton's coffee!)
Rob