Pattern Designers + Quilt Shops: How to Build Partnerships That Work for Everyone

In this episode, Tori and Andi dig into a topic they've been hearing about from both sides - the relationship between pattern designers and quilt shops. Are they competitors? Partners? Somewhere in between?

They break down the real economics of pattern design (spoiler: a $12 retail pattern doesn't go far at wholesale or distributor pricing), why most designers can't rely on direct-to-consumer sales alone, and what it actually takes to get your patterns into shops and distributors. Tori shares what she's seen at H&H over the past few years - including designers who got turned down multiple times before landing distributor deals - and Andi talks about the importance of having proof of concept before you pitch.

From there, they get into practical strategies for working directly with local quilt shops: matching your patterns to a shop's vibe, offering kits and trunk shows, hosting demo days, and showing up as a true partner (not just someone looking for shelf space). Andi shares her approach to trunk show contracts, and Tori makes the case for why every shop visit should include a reel, a tag, and a social media shoutout - because boosting a shop's digital presence is one of the most valuable things a designer can do.

They also talk about the role of email marketing, why teaching locally builds authority even for your online audience, and what Joann's closing means for the industry's reliance on independent quilt shops.

Whether you're a pattern designer trying to grow your reach or a shop owner wondering how to make these partnerships work, this conversation is packed with ideas you can act on.

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Chapters 

00:00 Bridging the Gap: Quilt Shops and Pattern Designers
04:06 Understanding Business Models: Sales Strategies for Designers
06:46 Building Relationships: Strategies for Working with Quilt Shops
09:42 Creating Value: How Designers Can Support Shops
12:40 Marketing Together: Boosting Visibility for Quilt Shops
15:29 The Importance of Community: Engaging with Local Shops
18:32 Partnerships for Success: Elevating the Quilting Industry

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Co-Hosts:

Tori McElwain @heytori.tech & https://www.heytori.tech/

Andi Stanfield @truebluequilts & https://truebluequilts.com/

Transcript

Andi (00:06.348)
Welcome to another episode of Quilting on the Side. Tori and I wanted to have a conversation today to really help prepare people for the quilt business in terms of pattern design and working with quilt shops. So where do you want to start, Tori? We've got a couple different perspectives and tangents we can go down with this topic.

Tori McElwain (00:26.366)
Yeah, so...

So I think we might wind a little bit here, but stay with us because I think this is a really important conversation. We've gotten a few comments, a few questions from quilt shop owners and from pattern designers about working with quilt shop owners. So I think what we're gonna try to do today is kind of bridge that gap between what do quilt shops expect, what do pattern designers expect? And one of the comments that was made was kind of...

It was, was an implication that pattern designers don't need quilt shops. When, when I talked to pattern designers, it's like a dream to see their patterns in a quilt shop. And that's kind of where the subject kind of came from. There's a couple of those comments, like how we definitely need to be working together, quilt shops and pattern designers. And what we thought today we could maybe start with, the business models for each, I think, and then show how we can work together.

I think that might be the best way to go. So we know for pattern designers, they rely on bulk sales because they're selling a $12 pattern, a $14 pattern. It's not a huge moneymaker. And then when you cut that down, that's retail price, right? So when you're selling to wholesale, that's $7. When you're selling to distributors, that's even lower. That's like, I'm gonna say at least, yeah, like five, four, somewhere in their dollars. Like it's not very much. So when you're selling, you know, three,

Andi (01:29.516)
Yeah, of course.

Andi (01:48.718)
three or four dollars.

Tori McElwain (01:56.338)
patterns to a quilt shop, you're only making like $12. Whereas if you're able to grow, let's say a following and sell directly to consumer, that can be a good way to go, but it takes a lot of work. It takes a lot of getting in front of people. And we know there are a few outliers out there that have successfully done that and have built a huge audience where they can release a pattern and it sells and it makes them a lot of money because they don't have to worry about wholesale. They don't have worry about distributor pricing.

but most pattern designers, they rely on that bulk sell. So getting in with the distributor and having three patterns in a hundred quilt shops is the only way that they can make this business sustainable. I don't bother.

Andi (02:40.642)
Yeah. So you're right, because with the internet, it makes the barrier to entry so low that pattern designers, like you said, can go directly to the consumer. But we need to really work on that partnership with shops because, you know, I don't want to keep a bunch of inventory to have to kit up my own patterns. I want

to partner with those retail shops that are offering the actual supplies to make my pattern. So it just makes sense to do that. But on the shop owner perspective, they may not be interested in all these individual designers coming up and saying, hey, sell my pattern, sell my pattern. So like you were saying, working with distributors to get that bulk order is definitely the way to go.

So what do you say to pattern designers about reaching out to those distributors?

Tori McElwain (03:45.598)
Well, I'm going say H &H is probably the best place to do it. Anytime that you could talk to them in person is going to be great. If you, and if you get denied, don't give up. So we had, I've talked to a few pattern designers over the last couple of years. Like I've gone to H &H, this'll be my third year. So the first year, like some of the big distributors said no to them and they had like six to eight patterns. Like they had a good amount and not like a super amount.

Andi (03:56.59)
You

Tori McElwain (04:14.428)
large amount, but they had a good amount. And then the next year they said no, but then one said yes. And then the next year, now she's got one in particular I'm thinking of, she's got three. Now she has three distributors. So I wouldn't give up. Sometimes they're not looking for your type of patterns yet or your style yet. And they may be interested later. So that's one thing. Another thing is to look at

not necessarily distributors, but those online shops that sell to more than like their big online shops. Like I'm thinking Fat Quarter Shop, like maybe approaching them if you can't get into a distributor and seeing if they're interested in holding patterns. I mean, there's different ways that you can go to kind of see where you live, anywhere you can get one to many is going to help. But yeah, H &H is probably like, and I know it's coming up, we talked about it a lot, but it is a great event to do just that is to get.

in front of distributors that real people that actually have buying power and get their feedback, whether it's positive or not so positive, it's always great to hear it. That way you know which direction to go. What about you, Nandy? What are you doing?

Andi (05:21.942)
Yeah, for sure. I agree. This year will be my first year at H &H. When I went to market many, many years ago, it was from the just the shop owner newbie perspective. And I didn't have the idea of networking with some of these businesses and the distributors. So one of the

comments that comes to mind that I saw in our Facebook quilt pattern designer group was that you want to kind of have proof of concept that your pattern is popular enough for distributors to take it nationwide. Because you were saying having a collection, having several patterns, having a library that the distributors can choose from and feature.

will help to show your style. But we've also seen people be successful with just one pattern. But they had proof that that one pattern was popular. you have to put a little bit of the time and effort into it. It's not like you just design a pattern, then the next week you take it to a distributor and you're going to have this new business. So you do need to put the work into it.

But yeah, H &H, I'm really looking forward to it. And they have the fall show in Houston this year. So if you can't make it to Chicago in May, definitely look at these future opportunities coming up. And Crossroads, we've talked about that a lot, that's coming up in California in the spring of 2027. yeah, Things to put on your long-term planning calendar.

Tori McElwain (06:53.137)
I do.

Tori McElwain (07:08.998)
January, January. Yeah.

Tori McElwain (07:15.23)
Sure.

Andi (07:16.43)
So working with quilt shops, what can pattern designers do? What do you think some strategies there are to get your work out in front of more people?

Tori McElwain (07:33.48)
Well, okay, so we know that quilt shops, they're not super interested in holding patterns in bulk either. So we do know that. We know that a few quilt shop owners may see you as competition because you're selling directly to consumer, which honestly I think is mislead, misled because we post on Instagram all the time just to get eyes on it and hope that a distributor will like it and then get it up there. But, and there's some people who are, successful at that.

But the majority of us, it's very hard to build up that kind of following off of a handful of patterns and to get actual sales coming in. So that's one myth I want to dispel is that quilt pattern designers are making a ton of money because there are a few that are and they're doing amazing, but the majority of us, we do need help. We need to get into a one to many situation where people can buy these patterns in bulk. So working directly with a quilt shop, I think it's great if you go in there regularly.

if you actually take the time to get to know their style, because what they have in stock is what their customers are buying. And then from there, you can design maybe a sample, maybe a pattern that goes with that, with the vibe of the quilt shop, the style, the vibe.

Andi (08:50.006)
Yeah, that is so true because when I was working at my mom's shop, she was very drawn to the big bold prints. So Anna Marie Horner was really popular back then. I think she's gotten remarried to Anna Maria Perry now. Kay Facet, know, Tula Pink was just coming on the scene. And there's a very different vibe with those designers.

versus Thimbleberry, Civil War reprints, know, 30s fabrics. just, big and bright and bold colors versus the more subdued, you know, warm, homey, homespun type feel. So yeah, your patterns could go one direction or the other. So definitely take the time to get to know your local shops.

support them, buy fabric from them, attend classes, get to know people, really insert yourself in the community of the shop, and I think that does a lot for building your success.

Tori McElwain (10:02.354)
And I think if you keep in mind ways to help the shop make more money than just a pattern. So if they're buying your pattern from a distributor, you can come in, you can have kits made with that shop and then sell the kits and there everyone's making money. You can host classes, you can do trunk shows, right Andi?

Andi (10:22.882)
Yeah. Yeah. I've had several experiences like that where I just arranged a demo day and I, you know, brought in my own backdrop and had a table just in the corner of the shop that had my selection. And, and it was great to then drive the sales for the shop because people would see my pattern. They'd immediately go pick out the fabric. So that's great. One.

tip I have for people in terms of helping the shops out is if you are interested in kidding up fabric, yes, you have your fabric requirements, but especially things like block of the month or something, you can make a more tailored handout for the shop of how to cut the fabric for the customers and

Things like that. Anything you can do to make the shop's job easier. If there are product tie-ins, that is a great one. I have several patterns that feature the twister rulers. So, you know, that's perfect for a shop. And you should always, if you have the opportunity to teach your own patterns in a shop, look for ways to make those add-on sales beyond just the fabric, you know.

I'm always promoting the adequate or ruler, the block lock, these kind of staple notions. The Kai scissors with the neck holder when I'm long arm classes, you know, that's an easy thing to recommend for your students in class to get from the shop.

Tori McElwain (12:11.944)
And I would keep in mind that while you're at the shop, so I'm imagining you with your table and everything. And I'm like, okay, while you're at the shop, keep in mind that you are seen as a representation of the shop. You are not there solely as your own person. So if people are coming up to you asking questions that aren't necessarily about your pattern, you can help them by directing them to someone who can help. Or if you do know a lot about the machines, like I purchased my Baby Lock because I love their machines and I learned a lot by just being in the shop. So I can be like, well, I have this machine. I really love it, but let me find you.

You know, Emily was the shop owner. Let me find Emily who like knows everything about these machines because you're going to love it. Let me just grab her and then I would go get her. So like, think a mindset there too, is that you're there representing not just your business, but also the quilt shop and as a whole, like the quilting industry. So like if newbies are coming in, you want to make sure you're like embracing them and things like that. You want to make sure you are an extension of the quilt shop and extension of how, of your quilting.

industry of our crystal. I'm a little sick, so my brain is a little slow, represent.

representation of the quilting industry as a whole. There, got it up.

Andi (13:22.808)
Yeah, yeah. One other thing that may come to mind in terms of making things easier for the shop and making it easy for them to say yes to carrying your patterns is if you offer a trunk show. And this is not necessarily an in-person where you have to come and show off your quilts, which is a great event. If your store has these kind of sample days where, you know,

meet the designer, you can certainly offer to go to a shop and do that kind of event. But you can also offer a trunk show nationwide and ship several quilts with your patterns. And I've done that before. So if people need some help, I'm happy to share the little simple contract I've written up. It is not illegal.

you know, I did not pay an attorney to draft this contract. It just kind of spells out certain expectations, you know, definitely list the quilts. I say that they need to be shipped back in the same

what's the word I'm thinking of, in the same condition as they arrived. So they need to be wrapped in plastic because I don't want them to get wet in the mail if it goes through a rain or snowstorm or something. And the shipping, I paid it, obviously, shipped to the shop, but then I expect them to pay to ship it back. So.

Tori McElwain (14:30.814)
Good day,

Tori McElwain (14:34.642)
Good job.

Andi (14:55.17)
just spell out some of those expectations. But yeah, if you've got a sample ready, that certainly takes the burden off a shop to make up a sample. But then we get into that whole aspect of, know, is it using a fabric they have and all that kind of stuff.

Tori McElwain (15:13.918)
I am my local shop in Arizona. So she would order fabric for me if I had that if I asked for it. So one thing I loved was grunge. And at the time I was making like all my samples with grunge because like as a pattern designer looking for more like solids or tone on tones for your patterns. And so she would order the grunge that I liked and then she would pick the ones that our customers typically like and that's how she would like pull more fabric in and

Andi (15:23.479)
Mm-hmm.

Tori McElwain (15:44.511)
a note on shipping your quilts. I saw someone make this suggestion. I think it's brilliant, but don't ship the ones that'll make you cry if you lose it.

So when you're putting it together at Chunk Show, yeah, keep in mind that if this quilt gets lost, will your heart be broken? I'll definitely take a bunch of pictures of it just in case. But yeah, that was a piece of advice I saw. I was like, that's good to keep in mind.

Andi (15:53.867)
good advice.

Andi (16:06.166)
Yeah, yeah, for sure. But we all know that samples sell. So whatever you can do to help the quilt shop feature your pattern is a great idea. Talk to them about doing demo days, meet the designer events, anything you can do. But it comes back to that relationship. If you can get into a local shop and be really partner with them,

then I think that will go a long way to having them feature your patterns and be the premier destination when you have a new release. So that would be exciting.

Tori McElwain (16:47.666)
And I think that, I think you're totally right. think approaching that conversation specifically, when you walk in, I think you need to make an appointment first off because you're two professionals that need to meet together. And the shop owner is very busy. Like shop owners are incredibly busy. So I would definitely make an appointment. And then I would lead with, I want to make sure that this is valuable for both of us. And so they know that you want to be a partner, that you're not there just to make money for yourself. You actually want success for the quilt shop. Cause without the quilt shops, especially now Joanne's gone.

Like the quilting industry is going to nose dive. We need the quilt shops and we need to be able to partner with them and everyone to raise each other up, be more successful in this endeavor. So I think approaching it as a partnership is amazing. I love all the suggestions you had about having like extras that you can sell along with like your pattern or your truck show or anything like that. I think it's going to be wonderful. anytime you can talk up machines, it's going to be great. Cause we all know that the quilt shops, if they have machines in there, that's their big moneymaker.

I'm also thinking from a digital marketing perspective, get online, whatever your main social media platform is, you need to push out what you're doing at that shop. Every time you enter that shop, I would expect you to take a video as your digital marketing coach. On closing on the side, I would expect you to be the hype person for that local shop that you want to work with any shop that you walk in. you're on vacation, you better be taking a reel.

Andi (18:06.156)
You

Tori McElwain (18:15.768)
and showing the beautiful side they've worked on, let's probably hundreds of dollars, walk through their aisles, show how beautiful it is, tag their location, tag them. It's going to help enormously with their digital presence. And if you even want to go the extra mile doing a blog post where you give them backlinks is going to help like be their cheerleader, raise them up, take reels, take videos, take pictures. That's the way I'm looking for. Carousels are great.

Talk to the and if it's awkward for you ask them and be like, hey, can I just do this or you could do little videos like I like to like the last one I did I walked up to a door showed the sign and then stop the video I walked in and when nobody was looking I went ahead and did like a little sweep of the store so you could see what it feels like to walk in and then I found some really cute areas they've really decorated well it looks so beautiful and I just did a slow pan in out kind of depending where I was

just to kind of showcase some of the stuff they have in there. And then I like put on the screen, like, look at this adorable quilt shop in, you know, wherever their location is, and they tag their location. Like you can do simple things like that, that's going to raise their digital presence and pull more people in. I didn't know, and this is just a testament to social media. There is a place two blocks from me that hosts, seriously, I've been here for four years and I didn't know that they host crafting classes.

Like hand, so they don't have a machine set up there. I mean, they might, the room is huge, but they're like two blocks from me. And I didn't know about it for four years and it popped up on my tick tock. I was like, wait, wait, what? I've seen that sign before. What? That's what they do there. I thought it was like a souvenir shop and it wasn't, it was a crafting place. They do crochet knit, hand embroidery stuff that they were, that's the classes they were talking about. And, one of them was painting. Another one was like,

Ceramic painting but it seems like they brought their own ceramic but like Doing that online can help reach local people It can help pull people that people are on vacation people like to do, you know The road trips where they stopped all the quilt shops and if they don't know there's a cool shop there Like this could be a great way to help boost their social presence

Andi (20:25.41)
Yeah, of course. And like you said, it needs to be a partnership. Anytime you can shout out your local area, it's going to boost everybody's visibility. So that is a great reminder to promote your local shops and tag them on all your content. And that has been a big reminder, not necessarily just for pattern designers, but for teachers as well.

because when I have conversations with my local shop and their teacher coordinator, you know, because she's always sending us reminders, hey, I need future events and get me your supply list and all those kinds of reminders. But we've had those conversations that it's not just on the shop to promote your event. You need to be out there letting people know, hey, I'm teaching this weekend at, you know, whatever shop it is, or I have a class coming up here.

Tori McElwain (21:22.75)
Mm-hmm.

Andi (21:25.804)
Yeah, you know, every time you take a picture of your fabric, you can tag a local shop or a manufacturer or something and start.

Tori McElwain (21:34.303)
I bought fabric from online shops and I was on there going hey I got this one from that I got these from this person I got this and I would tag them because I'm like hey to help your digital presence. you also my gosh, lost You also want to send an email to your email list. That's been a question I've had before where should I even tell my list that I'm teaching locally? Yes, number one. You don't know who's on your list

Right? There are people who may drive two hours just to take a classroom you in person. There may be people driving through. I've had a person drive through. They were coming through Tucson. I was an hour down and they're like, Hey, I want to come to your shop more free motion quilting. Like great, come on down. And it shows that even if they're in the local area, they cannot see you in person. still builds up your authority.

Right. It builds up your authority. builds up your trust because we're in the age of AI where not everything is trustworthy. So showing that you are physically teaching real people in these real settings, great authority booster. So yes, if you have an email list, which you all should have an email list, I'm like shaking my finger at my microphone.

Andi (22:43.808)
Yeah.

Tori McElwain (22:46.696)
You shall have an email list and whenever you're teaching, at least insert it into your newsletter. It doesn't have to be like a standalone email, but in your newsletter, it'd be like, Hey, I'm going to be teaching over here. These dates. Like we're really excited about this subject and keep it that simple.

Andi (22:58.882)
Yeah, yeah, great, great ideas. And a lot of shops have online sales. You mentioned, you know, the lack of accessibility with Joanne's closing. So if you can tag your local shop in an email and say, you know, I've got this pattern coming out, it's, you know, you can find it in this such and such a shop and I use their fabric line, blah, blah, blah.

tag them and then other people can go direct to the source. And like you said, that's a great boost for everyone.

Andi (23:38.314)
Any other thoughts on partnering with quilt shops? I'd love to hear from shop owners. If they're listening to this episode, please comment, send us an email, let us know what you have found successful in terms of pattern sales and working with pattern designers.

Tori McElwain (23:58.526)
And I hope we brought a perspective that shows that this isn't a competition. Shops are the heart and soul of the quilting industry and pattern designers are here to help raise that up, to help give an instrument for people to make quilts with and that we can all help each other and make this a better industry.

Andi (24:22.54)
Yeah, for sure. We definitely want to see quilting continue for generations to come. So thanks, everybody. We hope you find some quilting time real soon, and we'll see you in the next episode.