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Main Street Reimagined Podcast
This is a podcast for dreamers, creators, developers, and entrepreneurs to learn, share, and be inspired to change your community through small business.
Main Street Reimagined Podcast
Episode 28: Stitching Success; Candice DeWitt's Entrepreneurial Journey
Have you ever thought of turning your hobby into a business? Join us as we unlock the journey of Candice DeWitt, the owner of Stitch and Skein, whose passion for fiber arts led her to create a beloved yarn shop in the heart of downtown Marion. Discover how Candice juggled her full-time job while establishing her brand, offering Ohio-made indie dyed yarns and farm-to-stash products sourced from local farms. Get inspired by the vibrant community she's cultivated through open stitch sessions that have become a local hub for crafting and companionship.
Candice takes us through the challenges and triumphs of launching her own business, sharing insights about managing inventory and setting up her online store. With nearly four years under her belt, she candidly discusses the highs and lows of entrepreneurship and the unexpected joys that come from teaching and engaging with her community. From beginner classes to advanced workshops, Candice reveals how fostering a supportive environment has been key to her shop's success and her own personal fulfillment.
We also explore the strategic marketing efforts that have put Stitch and Skein on the map, both locally and online. Learn how Candice leverages social media, niche websites like Ravelry, and events such as the Heartland Yarn Adventure to attract a diverse customer base. Her story is a great reminder of the importance of diversification, community support, and perseverance in building a successful niche business. Whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting out, Candice's insights offer valuable lessons and encouragement for anyone looking to follow their passion.
Guest Links:
Facebook: facebook.com/stitchandskein
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The Main Street Reimagined Podcast, Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqfkmF5bRH0od1d3iiYKs3oEn_gvMYk7N
Henry Development Group:
Facebook: facebook.com/henrydevelopmentgroup
Website: www.henrydevelopmentgroup.com
Developing News Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/33110524eb5c/developing-news
Luke Henry:
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/luhenry
Facebook: facebook.com/luke.henry.148
#SmallBusinessSuccess #FiberArts #EntrepreneurLife #MadeInOhio #WomenInBusiness #ShopLocal #HandmadeWithLove #CraftCommunity #IndieDyer #YarnShop #SupportSmallBusiness #CreativeEntrepreneur #LocalLove #PassionToProfit #BusinessJourney #DowntownMarion #StitchAndSkein #YarnLovers #MakerMovement #HandmadeBusiness
It was kind of a rural one because I was still working at the time at the health department. So I was working a full-time job, picking up my kid from school, immediately heading to the shop to sit there and enter inventory into Square. And we were trying to build a website at the same time because it was very important to me to have online sales channels as well, so that people out of state could also order from me. And it was just this whole endeavor that I, just everything I had went into it for that month and a half before we opened. Just this whole endeavor that I, just everything I had went into it for that month and a half before we opened.
Speaker 2:This is the Main Street Reimagined podcast, a show for people ready to turn visions into realities and ideas into businesses. Hey, I'm Luke Henry and each week I lead conversations with Main Street dreamers who took the leap to launch a business, renovate a building or start a movement, their ideas, their mindsets and their inspirations, as well as some of the highs and lows along the way. This is a place for dreamers, creators, developers and entrepreneurs to learn, share and be inspired to change your community through small business. Enjoy the show. Hey, friends, this is the Main Street Reimagined podcast and I am so grateful for you being here and listening in. I'm excited today for a conversation with Candice DeWitt. Candice is the owner of Stitch and Skein. This is a kind of yarn and more type of retail shop in downtown Marion. She also does classes and different activities, and so I'm excited to dive into that, hear about her place, tell her story and we're going to have an interesting conversation. So thanks for being here, candice.
Speaker 1:Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely so. Those of you that are not watching on YouTube can't see that while we're talking, candice is knitting, and I am so impressed and mesmerized by this process. First of all, it's so satisfying to watch just all the little loops coming together, but her ability, while we were like before we started recording, to be talking and knitting at the same time is seriously impressive. So, those of you that are missing this on video, you might have to pop over and see this in action. So just, I'll put that out there before we start talking. So I had to redo the intro of the show because I couldn't even write and listen at the same time. And she's here knitting and talking and everything else. So this is great. So, candice, let's start Before we hear your story. Tell folks a little bit about your store Again, what all you offer there, and just a little bit if they've never come and visited before.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so I am what's considered a local yarn shop Tiny little shop, of course, as it says. We carry yarns that you won't find in like big box stores. We have Ohio made indie dyers so people dye their own yarn. I carry some of their yarn, so it's like extra hyperlocal. I have some yarns that are farmed to stash is what I call it, so we have some that are actually raised right in Caledonia.
Speaker 1:On a farm in Caledonia A friend of mine, sharon. She raises the sheep, sends it out to a mill, has it processed into yarn and then we sell it in store so you can get something that's literally made right here in the backyard.
Speaker 2:Yeah, wow, that's unbelievable.
Speaker 1:Um, we do classes my most popular thing is open stitch. Um, we do those on Fridays five to seven and Sundays two to four. That's uh, there's no fee for that. There's no class fee or anything. It's literally just a social hour. You come in and hang out and knit or crochet or embroider, whatever your thing is, and just socialize and make friends with people.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah. I love that Just great community building and I'm sure that's been something that's kind of gained a little bit of steam gradually over the years. I mean, what kinds of people do you have? Do you have like regulars, or is it kind of a smattering of different folks?
Speaker 1:You know, week to week it varies. There's kind of a core group of regulars that are there almost every week. We have some that you know in summer they drop off because it's you know, gardening season and whatnot, and then they come back in the winter. It's a. It's a pretty good core group, though Overall like if I look at the whole year it's a lot of the same faces and they've all become friends with me. They've become friends with each other. I've watched friendship bloom between people, which has been really exciting to see.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love that. That's very cool. And then you do some like uh, other classes right For occasionally, for folks that do not.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, so we'll do like beginning knitting and beginning crochet, um, those are usually the more popular ones. And then after that I try to offer like some 102 level classes where it's kind of skill building Um, but I feel like once you learn the basics you're ready to kind of tackle even like your first sweater, cause you can kind of learn on the go. So those next level classes are not quite as like, they're not offered as frequently and they're not as popular, because once you get in you're like, oh, I want to make this, I want to make this, and you kind of know what you're doing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:I do. On occasion, like right now, I've been going in the fall to George Washington Elementary and teaching in the art program as part of their Ohio Arts Council grant and teaching weaving.
Speaker 2:Oh, okay.
Speaker 1:So that's been really fun. I went for like three weeks or four weeks. I took my spinning wheel in and we carted wool and the kids got to see how the yarn gets made. And then we switched over to a floor loom and the kids got to weave with the yarn that we made on this big floor loom which was really fun too, very cool.
Speaker 2:So yeah, taking the show on the road. I've obviously been in your back area where you have some of that equipment and I wasn't sure if that was kind of for show or if you really used it or I don't use it as much as I would like, but I do use it.
Speaker 2:OK, yeah, very cool. So. So that is stitch and skein, and so you were explaining to me, before it went on air, what a skein is, and so for those others that might be listening, who are also uneducated yarn folks like me, explain what that is.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so way back when we had to make our yarn by hand on a spinning wheel, you would have had to wind it off of the bobbin because it would be kind of like a think of like a giant sewing thread bobbin right, but it'd be bigger because it's thicker yarn.
Speaker 1:You have to wind it off the bobbin somehow so you could wash it, because the washing process sets the twist so it doesn't curl up on you, okay, and they would wind it off onto what what I know is a skein winder. It probably has some historical name, but it's basically like a, almost like a oh, I'm trying to think of of how the best to explain it a bunch of like pegs kind of coming off of almost like a windmill, oh, but you know, not angled Right, and it would have like little dowels that come off of it and you would wrap the skein around it, and 82 times, I think, was the count, and that was how you knew that that was a complete skein. That was like the unit of measurement they would use. So then if you go to sell the yarn or trade it, you would say this is a full skein of yarn worth X amount when you go to trade and whatnot.
Speaker 2:Okay, so then that naming has sort of persisted, and you said now that's just sort of a generic name for any bundle of yarn yeah, I mean yarn comes in like balls.
Speaker 1:It comes in what we call hanks, which are like big loops. But roughly skein would mean all of those. Okay, you can get down to the like nitty-itty technical of how it comes from the, from the factory, like donuts and all these other things, but to me it's a skein of yarn.
Speaker 2:Okay, okay. Well, there you have it. Everyone who's wondered about the name and where that has come from, you heard it from the source. Uh, that is officially the, the skein definition, the pronunciation and the backstory. So uh, so with that, let's hear a little bit about your backstory. Uh, love to hear you know kind of your uh journey from uh childhood through you know what got you to a very, as you said, uh niche market here. Uh, you know with the, with the independent yarn store, and so uh, tell us about what that journey is.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So, um, as a kid, I always loved crafting, like it's just always been. I always had my hands in everything, right, my would dig into my mom's sewing cabinet and I would steal fabric and lace and stuff from from her cabinet and make things. Um, when I went to stay with my grandparents, my grandma would take me to Walmart and we would get plastic, canvas and yarn and she would just that was how she occupied us.
Speaker 1:Um, as I got older, I kind of got away from some of that, just because, you know, as a teenager you get busy. Um, I discovered the internet when I was, you know, 13, when we first got the internet home, and I, you know 13, when we first got the internet home, and I, you know, shifted gears into learning how to code websites and whatnot. And then, over time, I kind of realized that there's nothing tangible about doing anything online, right, like you delete a file and it's gone. If I made something with my hands, though, it's physically there. So that was kind of like an antidote to all the online stuff that I was doing, to have that physical manifestation of all the work that I was putting in. It was, let's see here, 2007 is when I actually taught myself to knit. So that was what, 15 years ago Almost 20.
Speaker 2:Yes, good Lord, I know, I know, I do that too. It's like that was like five years ago. Yeah, no, that was like five years ago.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, that was almost 20. Yeah, okay, so almost 20 years ago. Um, it started off that I worked for the BMV and Lewis center and we were a newer location and it was right there in front of super Walmart like next to senior Antonio's and I would go in there and I would get like magazines just to kill time because we were slow, or I would get cookbooks and stuff. And one day I was like you know what I want to learn to knit. So I picked up a learn to knit kit and the crappiest yarn you could possibly learn to knit on, and sat there in between customers and taught myself and then it just became kind of an obsession. Um cause, prior to that I'd done a little bit of scrapbooking, but that always required me being in a workspace and my husband would complain about how I was never physically present. Knitting was something I could sit on the couch and be physically present without being present, if that makes sense.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:Like I could sit there and work on whatever I was working on. He could watch his TV or play his video games, and we were together without really like being together.
Speaker 2:Okay, yep.
Speaker 1:So I mean, so it just kind of like bloomed into one of those things that it's portable, I could take it wherever I went. So I would knit at work, on breaks, I would knit at home. I keep knitting in my car, um, you know, cause we're Mary in the land of trains.
Speaker 2:So you get stopped by a train.
Speaker 1:I just pull out my knitting If I get two rows done, so you get stopped by a train.
Speaker 2:I just pull out my knitting If I get two rows done.
Speaker 1:It's only two rows, but it was better than nothing.
Speaker 2:That's true.
Speaker 1:That's true. So eventually it came around to the idea of starting the shop. I had lots of reservations, obviously, but it's been something for at least probably five years prior. I had been planning like I wouldn't say rough, like strictly planning. It was more of like, hey, this would be really kind of fun. So we would take trips to Columbus or to Cleveland and just hit yarn shops and I was looking at yarn, my husband was looking at okay, how do they have things laid out, like what's the infrastructure of? Like how are they, how are they setting up their, their yarns and stuff. And then we'd like go get lunch and we kind of like collaborate and scheme and just say, hey, like what if we did this?
Speaker 1:But it was always with the idea that, like this was never going to happen, this was going to be a retirement goal, like I was working in government for 16 years, like I had no intention of even leaving that long, long-term plan.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, and obviously it became a short-term plan at some point. So tell us a little bit about kind of where where this came. You know a little more closer to home and what made you take the leap into doing it sooner than later?
Speaker 1:So it was kind of a combination of two things. I was finishing up my associate's degree at Marion Tech in March of 2020 when everything went to health.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, we remember.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I was working at the health department at the time while also trying to finish my degree, so I was overwhelmed at work. And then I was trying to finish this class, to finish the degree. And the last class I was doing was entrepreneurship, which I was really, really excited about because I'd always had in mind, wanted to run my own type of, you know, store of some sort. I did my business plan and I didn't know what I was doing. I didn't. I was making up numbers of oh yeah, I think I'm going to bring in this much per year and my inventory is going to cost me this. I'm going to make this much at the end of the year. I was just throwing out numbers trying to be somewhat reasonable, but like I was way off.
Speaker 2:In reality I was way off Right. You vetted that now.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. But at the end of the class when I got the report back from my instructor, it had he had a remark about this. Sounds like a fantastic idea. I would love to see what you make of it. And just for some reason, having that external validation from my instructor, who has seen business plan after business plan after business plan, to give me that kind of like feedback, was a good boost.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 1:So I kind of had that in the back of my mind and as we went through 2020 and all the COVID response and whatnot, and I became more and more burnt out. It finally got to a point where my husband actually started looking for retail spots for me. It wasn't something that I chose necessarily up front, it was more my husband was like you are miserable and I need to find a way to get you out of this. So he kept an eye out downtown looking for hey, this space is open, what do you think about this? And we kind of just looked around, kind of not really like I was very, very, very hesitant because it's such a big, big leap.
Speaker 2:Right, I mean, you know obviously yeah.
Speaker 1:Um, and we could just kind of glance in the window, a couple of places, cause I was still like just just just nervous and finally the spot that I'm in now, 144 west center. The sign went up that they were going to be open or available and my husband called the owners at the time and said, hey, can we do a walkthrough? And we walked in and I wasn't sold immediately, but it was pretty close, like the closest thing you would get to like being the same, like yes, yes, this is this, is it? This is the dream? Um, we looked through it.
Speaker 1:I didn't love that. It was kind of, you know, partitioned off because it was office spaces before. I had more of an open vibe in mind, but I loved the brickwork, I loved the ceilings, I loved the wood floor and all the natural things of those old buildings. Right, knitting is one of those things that has a lot of character to it because it's handmade. Any fiber craft, really, quilts and whatnot, sure, and I wanted the space to reflect that and this space absolutely did so. It was December 24th, actually, it was Christmas Eve. It was like a Christmas present for me. We signed our lease, um, by January 1st we had keys and then by February 13th I had opened.
Speaker 2:Okay, okay, yeah, that's pretty like it was. It was a quick turnaround.
Speaker 1:I mean it was very, very minimal. When I opened right, it was not. I didn't have all this inventory that I have now. Um, I didn't have half of anything that I actually really wanted. I was just trying to bare bones Like I didn't want to. I didn't want to pay rent on a place that I wasn't making money on, so I was like let's just white knuckle through it, get through it, get started and then figure it out.
Speaker 2:Yeah yeah, so you didn't have like a lot of time before you signed the lease and everything to be kind of acquiring inventory or lining up vendors or any of that. It's sort of like it's go time. We're going full tilt on trying to look because folks that haven't opened a retail space like there's not just like some you know, online directory of every wholesale vendor of different things and you know like you've got to go out and build those relationships. Some things come through different distributors, some things are directly with the manufacturer. Obviously you also have cultivated individual relationships with kind of indie and local. You know again, those all take time and so to be able to have any kind of minimally viable concept and amount of inventory in a month, is pretty impressive.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was. It was kind of a rural one, cause I was still working at the time at the health department. So I was working a full-time job, picking up my kid from school, immediately heading to the shop to sit there and enter inventory into square, and we were trying to build a website at the same time, because it was very important to me to have online sales channels as well, so that people out of state could also order from me. And it was just this whole endeavor that I just everything I had went into it for that month and a half before we opened.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. So yeah, tell us a little more about that process. I don't know, this is something we've really dug into in terms of, like, learning how to navigate a POS system and how you're going to enter your inventory and some of that. Did you have experience in retail? Had you ever worked with a POS system? Was this just kind of again like baptism by fire? Like, tell us about that A little bit of both.
Speaker 1:The most experience I had at retail was a summer I worked at Lowe's Okay. So, like I understood the concept of writing a register, I didn't really have a concept of, like, the best way to categorize everything. Um, I knew, you know, based on my industry, you have different yarn weights, so you have like a worsted weight and a bulky weight yarn versus. What I'm using is like in this project, as a sock yarn, so it's really thin. So I kind of went in and just categorized everything that way and then had a category for needles and a category for hooks, for crochet hooks. Um, things got a little muddy though, sometimes when I tried to categorize things and it fit into two places. So sometimes, like, I've put things in one category and then I can't remember where I put it, and so then I go to do inventory at the end of the month and it's like crap, where did I go Like? Where did I put that? Did I go Like, where did I put that? Yeah, um, most of it, though like entering it into square was easy.
Speaker 1:Um, I'm pretty tech savvy, so most of that was was easy, other than um I early on wish I would have had a barcode scanner, because I was manually typing in every single skill because I didn't have the scanner yet to really scan it and then I didn't think about the fact that most of the indie dyed products that I bring in, or even some of the stuff I order through, like fair online, um by small, small makers, don't have barcodes.
Speaker 1:They're not in that system to have a UPC code, so then I have to create something for them, and that was way more frustrating than I realized.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah yeah, way more frustrating than I realized. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you know, also, just there's a lot of other kind of small considerations that are often like very overwhelming to people. So again, I think it'd be helpful, like for the person out there.
Speaker 2:I have a lot of conversations with people. Some of them have great ideas and they want to do something. They've had the dream, you know, just like you, and it's kind of a maybe far out goal. Had the dream, you know, just like you, and it's kind of a maybe far-out goal feeling. But you know we have some conversation and they're like well, I just wouldn't know like what to do. There's like you've got to like do something with a vendor's license and you know are there other licenses you have to have? And you know there's your POS system and you know like that can be very overwhelming to people. Like talk through, kind of like how you navigated, figuring out what to do, who you need to talk to, and some of that Cause. Again there's, you know, not just sort of a manual for um, I don't think, uh, for opening an indie yarn shop.
Speaker 1:Um, so my answer is not going to be super helpful because I deferred to my husband.
Speaker 2:Okay, yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean he handles all this stuff on our other business. So I mean he knew, you know, setting up with the secretary of state to register the business name, get the, the, the uh tax ID number, the vendor's license. He kind of handled a lot of that for me because I was in the thick of like I need to bring in product, like that was my focus. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, that's great and and honestly I mean that's oftentimes I think the answer is to find another person, you know, find somebody who knows, uh, just to find another person that can help with that part of it. And oftentimes, excuse me, I tell people it's often not as bad as what people think. You know, as you mentioned, like it's basically like registering a name or creating LLC, getting a tax ID number and getting a vendor's license, and that really is pretty much what you need to open a legitimate business.
Speaker 2:You can open a checking account with that then at any bank and you know you can navigate, you know, with a little bit of Googling, like how to file your first monthly sales tax remittance and so, as you can, you know, I'm sure, a test like some of that, like you don't know until you do it, and it's just sort of you have to have the attitude of, well, I'm going to figure it out and I might not get it right, and I'll literally every job I've had in my life has just been figuring it out as you go.
Speaker 1:So it's not any different, and it's actually more fun this time around because it's for me like it benefits me rather than doing it for someone else.
Speaker 2:Yes, yeah, yeah, I think that's so important. So you know what are some things that you've.
Speaker 1:Uh, as you look back, at this experience, so this is now um three years uh, February 13th will be my fourth, fourth, fourth year.
Speaker 2:So, uh, so you know again, you've you've seen some highs and lows, uh, you've seen some some economic uh ups and downs through that period of time. I know that you mentioned that you're kind of a niche thing, and so talk a little bit about some of the unexpected challenges of running a business, and in particular, this particular business, and some of the unexpected joys of doing that as well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think let's see here challenges. Just learning to manage the day-to-day, like your cash flow, I think, was a challenge for me because I'm not unfamiliar with budgeting, um, especially on like a government level. But when you, when you have those first couple of years and you don't know what's coming, does that make sense?
Speaker 1:Like the first year it's all like, okay, this is the baseline, but then the second year you think it'll be baseline plus and sometimes it's not. That like you can't rely on that first year. So then you know, I've been trying to like compile data and look at long-term, but then you have those months where it's like this didn't match up at all to anything Like what the heck is going on.
Speaker 1:Um, so that can be, you know, challenging. I think in my particular industry, and maybe it's just my personality. Um, I get bored in my own business sometimes, Just because I have so many creative outlets and passions. I don't just knit, I crochet, I spin my own yarn, I weave, I sew, I like to draw, I have all these things. I'm just a naturally creative person and sometimes I feel boxed in running this business and it's because I took my hobby and turned it into a business.
Speaker 1:Right so now I'm not knitting for enjoyment so much as I'm knitting samples so I can sell things in the shop and that kind of sucks some of the life out of it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean I think that's good advice. I think that that's something that sometimes people might not think about. It is different when you kind of have to do something versus want to do something.
Speaker 2:And you know that same could be somebody that's you know baking or you know candlestick making or like whatever. Uh, you know it's like when you're doing it because you really enjoy it, it's one thing, and when you have to do it on a Friday night because you have orders that have to go out Saturday morning, it's it is it's different, and so I think that's really good advice for people that might be considering something that they're really passionate about. I think it's important to do something you're passionate about and you know it sounds like you wouldn't want to do anything else, but at but at the same time, you have to recognize that sometimes it's it's, it's still a job, it's still a job.
Speaker 1:It's just there's. You know there's the perks to it too, Right, you talk about, like, some of the positives and whatnot, the community that has formed in the shop just from hosting those open stitches. There are days where that's what keeps me going, because there's days I mean, if I'm being perfectly honest, there's days where I wake up and I'm like I don't want to do this anymore, Like I'm so frustrated, I'm tired, because I'm the only person that will have staff. So if I'm sick I'm still going in because I need to open up shop and make money.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:Um, but there's times where a lot of times that that community I tell myself like if I'm not there, then that community doesn't have a place to go and I don't get to see my friends and they don't get to see each other, and so that kind of. That's kind of been a nice perk, because I'm somewhat introverted until people really get to know me and it's hard to drag me out of my little shell. And that's kind of what this group has done. Having this shop has kind of forced me out of my shell and made friends with other people.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah. I love that. Anytime that there could be community built around certain passions and all of that, I think that's a really neat kind of overflow of being able to have a business and be able to build that community as a result, so that's really great. So I would assume that then that sort of becomes your kind of advisory panel as well, in terms of what products you're going to offer, or what kind? Of demand there is, or what kind of projects they want to embark upon, and so that I assume informs a lot of your purchasing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so a lot of my classes. I'm running a class right now on a sweater and I made the sweater last winter when we had that cold snap in early January and I made it and every single customer that came in was like oh my gosh, I want to make that, you need to do that as a class. So at the beginning of January, january 4th, we started a class on that sweater.
Speaker 1:When I go to do ordering I usually will ask like hey, does anyone want anything particular? Are you looking for a specific kind of yarn so that I can add that to my ordering list? Um, we do yarn tastings. One of my, one of my vendors will give uh, little sample balls of like maybe 20 yards and it's a little package of six different yarns. And we host a yarn tasting night where we have like wine and snacks and you just sit there and you knit or crochet up the samples just to kind of get a feel for like how it's going to work up, um, decide whether you like it or not, and then you can order like the full skates. It's almost kind of like the, like the pampered chef parties kind of thing, but not like mlm it's, you know know in the store Um, so that kind of informs my purchases too of you know
Speaker 1:what, what, what are people wanting to buy from this yarn tasting? Is there one in particular that's really popular? And if there is, that I know I need to bring that in. There's some that we get a yarn and every single one of us hate it and it's like Nope, not, not even bothering with that one. Um. And then I'm actually one of like the odd people that I will take my customers on field trips to fiber shows, so kind of like a craft show, but it's all for yarn and spinning and fiber and whatnot. And we take road trips. One of my customers has an RV and she will drive everyone so we can have like a camp so we can sit and knit at the same time.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:And we just go shopping and we like meet up with, up with indie dyers. I'll say hi to some of the ones that I'm friends with, but I get to kind of see what they're liking as far as colors and styles and then that influences me on like, okay, I know they really liked this color, so I'm gonna bring this in.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I love that and I don't, like, I don't see it as competition, like they're gonna spend that money with those indie dyers regardless, right, right. But it's community building. But again, like you, like I said, it informs me of hey, they really like the texture of this or they're really excited about, you know, alpaca fiber. So I need to start sourcing some alpaca yarn.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, a lot of the people that listen to the podcast are, you know, folks that are doing like downtown redevelopment or they're starting small business or interested in starting a small business, you know. So with with something like your shop that is, you know, has a fairly narrow kind of market of customers. Talk a little bit about how you've developed your customer base. How are people finding you? How have you really been able to decipher who your target customer is?
Speaker 2:And then how do you you know? And then that informs like how you market to them, speak to them, you know your brand, voice and all of that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. I think the fiber arts community is just unique in that you know we we're always on the lookout for other yarn shops, so word travels quick when someone's opening. I think when I first posted that on Facebook that I was going to open and my open date and everything, I don't know how many shares were on it, but I had people that said, hey, I saw you on Facebook, I saw you on.
Speaker 1:Facebook. Um, a lot of the marketing that I do to kind of reach is there's um a yarn crawl that happens every summer right now, called the Heartland Yarn Adventure. It goes across four different States. Um, last year I think there was 89 shops participating, or maybe it was 84. Um, but all these shops participate. You get a passport. You buy a passport for five bucks. Go around every store you visit. You get a stamp at the. Buy a passport for five bucks. Go around every store you visit, you get a stamp. At the end you turn in your passport and then you get entered for prizes. So even if you don't buy anything at those yarn shops, it's still, you still get entered to win. Um, so that's really helpful because I've had quite a few people that they didn't come during the the crawl, the 10 day period. But they have the passport, they have my information in their hands and they'll make a point to come visit later.
Speaker 1:Um, there's also lots of like very niche uh, websites geared towards these industries, right, so Ravelry is one that I use for patterns, but you also have listings on there for yarn shops. So if someone's looking for a particular yarn, they can go online and see hey, stitch and Skein has that. There's one called, I think, needle Travel that goes for quilting and cross-stitch and knitting and I have just a generic free listing on there. I haven't even paid for it. But sometimes people come in and say hey, I saw, you were listed on here. Us knitters, also people that like to. If we go on vacation we find a yarn shop. I've had quite a few people come in that are visiting Marion, either for weddings they're going over to the brickyard and they've got time to kill for a rehearsal dinner and they come over to the shop and they buy some yarn. Um, for me, if I'm like, if I go to Florida, I find a yarn shop and I buy yarn and I make a pair of socks out of it. That's my souvenir.
Speaker 1:I don't go either like the the the Florida t-shirt.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, or the the key chain. I go buy yarn and then I wear the socks and that reminds me of that vacation.
Speaker 2:So we have quite a bit of that too. Yeah yeah, that's super, super interesting. Never would have imagined there's a yarn crawl or there's multiple tasting either. But really fascinating so that I assume that that there's some sort of like association then that you kind of like that puts on that crawl, or I mean the yarn crawl is actually there's about three different yarn shops that are, that are kind of together overseeing it.
Speaker 1:There's been a couple over the years. You know they come and go as people retire. Yarn shops are one of those things that they are predominantly a retirement type job. So as people get older and they close, then those yarn crawls kind of go away. The current one there's three people that are running it between their their shops.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, but I mean, you know, super fascinating that people are coming from states away. Oftentimes it sounds like yeah. So it seems like you have an opportunity then, perhaps to kind of like bifurcate between people that are experienced, they're passionate about this stuff and they're kind of seeking out shops like yours they're probably not going to be like a regular, um, and then then also and your current regulars though, uh, also passionate, you know, already in the space and then seemingly like an opportunity to kind of recruit people to the love of, uh, fiber arts.
Speaker 1:I think it's what you said, right yeah uh.
Speaker 2:So you kind of have that opportunity as well, like I've seen you um, you know, not only doing the beginner classes, you know learning it, learn to crochet, but then also like selling some kind of like out of the box, you know, uh, project type things maybe it's for yeah, yeah for you know a kid to learn or to do. You know family to do that kind of craft together. So you kind of have both of those that you're serving at any given time.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, especially with you know, marianne lost Joanne's a couple of years ago, so I've had to kind of bring in some more things that I didn't initially anticipate bringing in to kind of fill some of that gap.
Speaker 2:Yeah, not that I'm complaining, Right, Sure, sure. So you know I guess you market to those two populations kind of differently. So I mean, is there been intention around how you do that specifically?
Speaker 1:You know, most of my marketing is towards the people who are already knitters. I have found in learning a new skill is always there's a time investment right. Like most people come in and they learn to crochet and they don't pick up on it. Like there's a time investment of learning and getting the hang of it. You know you don't just pick up the needles the first time and you're like immediately good at it. Um, so a lot of times my beginner classes I'll have people come in and they just decide this isn't for me. They tried something new and they're good.
Speaker 2:Um, so a lot of my marketing really is to the people that already kind of know what they do what they're doing yeah, um, just because that's the bigger market, right yeah, yeah, yeah, but it's great that you're able to kind of offer both oh yeah you know, it seems like there's probably a percentage.
Speaker 2:I mean, that makes sense what you're saying, that people are like, hey, I tried it, maybe not for me, I scratched the itch or maybe I'll do it, you know, again in the future, but probably a percentage as well that are like, yeah, this is kind of fun, like it's a, it's a neat pastime. I, you know, or I've kind of plugged into this community that you've developed and I could see myself doing this, it's, it's relaxing, or you know, whatever. So, so that's, that's fascinating Again. Just, I never knew so many things about yarn, although as you're sitting here doing this, I'm reminded kind of like this flashback so my grandmother had like this very elaborate sewing room at her house and she spent a lot of time in there and then was in her chair, you know, sewing or crocheting, like almost all of the time. I remember my mom did it as I was a kid as well. She was crocheting oftentimes and, yeah, it just kind of took me back to that. So not something I think about every day.
Speaker 1:Well, and I think most people think of knitting and crochet as being an old lady thing, right?
Speaker 1:I mean, I'm 40, so I'm kind of like tipping on the edge of that old lady thing. But I have quite a few younger people that come in the edge of that old lady thing. But but I have quite a few younger people that come in and crochet, especially with like uh, on Tik TOK. Crochet has a huge popularity with younger generations. Um, so that's been. I've had to kind of shift and you know, knitting's my primary hobby. I've had to force myself to start thinking about more crochet things to capture that younger audience, to keep them coming back in, cause I under no circumstances want to be seen as that, like old lady at the art shop.
Speaker 1:I'm not that old yet.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, I was thinking about that earlier as well, as we were starting to talk about marketing like that. It does seem like some of these things you're talking about, especially with like the loom and some of that like very like, or the spinningom and some of that like very like, or the spinning wheel and like some of that like kind of very old elements, like could be super popular on you know, which is sort of paradoxical, but could be super popular on on tiktok or you know instagram reels or something like that.
Speaker 2:We're getting that like kind of short burst of like activity and people are just like wow, that's like so satisfying to watch it's so interesting you know to learn about, like how yarn is made or like these things they didn't even think that they needed to know. And all of a sudden, they're learning about it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I mean cause we have machines that do all this stuff for us now, so we're removed from that process of how our clothes and textiles are made.
Speaker 2:Have you tapped into that as well at all, or you know kind of like done? You know some short videos of some of those types of activities.
Speaker 1:I've done some on TikTok. I'm not as good at doing the video as I should be. Early on, when I first opened the shop, I was doing virtual lessons. So I'd have, like my laptop set in front of me and I'd have a camera over my shoulder so that people could see me, but then they could see straight down to see what I was doing. So I would do like some virtual lessons that way. It's actually a priority for my 2025 goals. To get back into more video, though.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I love that a great way to kind of like marry that you know very like kind of younger audience with some older concepts and bridge the gap of sort of the old lady stigma of some of these things that you're doing and also showing you not being super old and also some younger, you know friends of yours that are part of your community, so that could be fun. I like that you're focusing on that and you know no judgment, of course. I mean oftentimes when we have others on this podcast that are running a small business and they're, you know, balancing family and all of the obligations and like marketing is such a big job for a small business owner and we've talked about that several times and it's just like there's a lot of aspirations that you have, of things you would like to do.
Speaker 2:And sometimes it just doesn't all get done, so you've got to prioritize. So I hear that and support. You know trying to do some new things though. So let's talk a little bit about your online presence, both with the shop and also, uh. You mentioned that you and your husband, uh, together, do websites and you know, so again, kind of the uh the overlap of how that's benefited you in your shop, but then also how you're working for other other customers too.
Speaker 1:Okay, Um, I mean, what do you want? Where do you want to start?
Speaker 2:Well, uh, let's start with kind of how that came about as well. The website business and then how it's evolved over time and then how it intersected with.
Speaker 1:So when I was 16, I had started interning actually in the building next door to your building, here, that little gray one. I started interning for a company called Mar online that did news and um website design and whatnot, and I had already spent a summer teaching myself HTML coding. So they took me, took me on and said, yeah, we won't pay you but like you can come hang out.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:And I showed up every day.
Speaker 2:I was like yes, it's 60.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I showed up every day for like two months and then they finally put me on payroll.
Speaker 2:So I mean and this is in the 90s, right, I mean.
Speaker 1:So this is like, this is like 2000. Okay, yeah.
Speaker 2:Late 90s, early 2000.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:This is like early website days. I mean, this is pretty cutting edge at that point. Yeah, you know, to be able to do that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. So I worked there till I was probably 19. And then I switched to part-time. I went to Delaware County and worked for the auditor's office there and the BMV Still worked part-time for Married Online my husband. In the meantime we started dating and we got married and he was still working there doing news. He was doing the journalism side of wearing online. Um, eventually the owners decided they were basically done with the business and we were told either you buy the business or you're out of a job. So I was still working.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, um, we kind of really felt like an obligation to our clients, cause we'd built up relationships with a lot of these these businesses. Um, so we made the decision that we were going to buy the business from the former owners. Um, sean worked at most of the time and I just kind of popped in when I could, cause I was working in the County job with the health insurance and all the benefits, doing the adult, like the adult side of things, right. Um, and I mean now it's like 15 years later that we still have this business. We don't take on as many clients as we used to. We don't run Married Online anymore. It's just a website design thing. It was really a lot for just two people to handle.
Speaker 1:Yeah sure, but we get to kind of pick and choose. Now, our clients. A lot of what I love doing is the nonprofit organizations, because we can build them a nice website that benefits them for a decent cost. Build them a nice website that benefits them for a decent cost. I would much rather do like nonprofit stuff any day over like the for-profit stuff anymore now that.
Speaker 1:I'm in that position. But the nice thing is because I know how to build websites and I know how to run backend software and things like that. Building the website for the shop was a breeze. We just use WordPress with WooCommerce built in. Woocommerce ports information over to Square so that I don't have to worry about inventory issues. We run shipping through Pirate Ship, which just imports through WooCommerce, so I don't have to manually type anything in when I want to print a label. It just imports it automatically. It's really been kind of awesome.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's, that's great. You know, I think again there's some people that might be like scrolling back and listening to that last minute and they're like, oh, pirate ship, they're taking notes, which is great. You know, I think that there are so many of those like plug in services and, and it's becoming easier and easier not taking anything away from what you're doing, but, you know, for kind of lay people to be able to set up some basic e-commerce on their website, if they're already, you know, already have something to to, you know, load a couple plugins and play around with it. Or maybe, you know, enlist somebody, uh, with some expertise to help them get that up and going and then can make it really seamless. For some folks that have a brick and mortar store and maybe they've been thinking about online, to hear you kind of simplify how easy it can be Hopefully gives them a little bit of motivation to get out there and explore some of those options. Yeah, so are you doing some online business then?
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I think when I last looked it was about 500 a month, which I mean isn't a lot, um, but you know, it's better it's. It's better than nothing. Right, and that's and that's sales that are coming through, that I'm not physically having to be there, me in the shop which is nice.
Speaker 1:Um, ultimately it would be nicer if I could do more online to kind of balance out that way. If I have a slow month in store like you know, we've had this winter weather nobody wants to go out and be nicer. If I could, if I could offset that Um, but there's such a there's such a vast market of competition online versus in store. You know there's websites that are going to sell stuff cheaper than I am Um, and people are going to go buy. You know a scheme that's a dollar cheaper and that's fine. If you're buying for me, you're getting the customer service experience of me being able to help fix your project If you screw something up you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:Um, a lot of what I do tend to sell. I think it's more like my clearance yarns, like when yarns get discontinued and you can't find them anymore but a pattern says, hey, you need to use Borroco's Mochi If I still have some in stock. Then people hit my website because I still have it Um so I see more of a perk of the online sales from that aspect.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, that's really fascinating. So, yeah, really um having things that other people don't have, just because it's been discontinued.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Uh, but potentially, I mean, it seems like maybe also as an outlet for some of those you know like hyperlocal things that you're selling you know that maybe there's very limited outlets for, and then it seems like, as you, you know, have or are now rebuilding some of your online education presence.
Speaker 2:that also could go well with the online sales you know because you're building that trust with people, they're learning from you and oftentimes people do feel some people don't necessarily care, but some people, you know, do feel obligated. Then like to say, well, she taught me to knit online. I'm going to at least buy a handful of items from her and be able to return the favor.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and like especially with my beginner classes online, you know, if you come in store, I'm there to help pick out the supplies that you need for the class. Right, if I do them online, what I've done in the past is actually the price includes your materials and for me to ship it to you. That way you have exactly what you need. You don't have to go to the store somewhere near you and say, okay, I don't know what size needle this is, will this work, or will this needle work with this yarn? Like, I just try to make it all inclusive, so it's a low barrier to even getting started.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's a really great idea. And then, are those classes like on demand or are they like a live? They've been live.
Speaker 1:Um, we're actually looking at usingDash, which is another plugin for WordPress where you can do more of those on demand, Because I would love to be able to, not even for online classes, but for some of my in-person classes. When we're learning a technique, I'd love to be able to record that and then give access to the customers that signed up for the in-person class that they could go to LearnDash and actually rehash that technique, so that they don't go home and completely forget and then feel lost.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, really great idea. I just think that the classes are such a valuable part of what you do and the education and the way that you're doing it, I think makes a lot of sense. And you know again, maybe there's somebody out there listening that is thinking about how this plugs into their business an opportunity where they could educate, where they could you know what gain new customers or followers or fans through doing the types of things that you're doing and then being able to also sell product as part of that as well.
Speaker 2:And you're providing great, great service because, yeah, I mean, if I could go on youtube, probably, and find you know how to knit, but, like, as you said, I don't know what kind of yarn to go by, I don't know where to go buy it, I don't know about what types of needles or specialized things that I need, and if you offer that already made in a box and then I'm going to show you how to use it and then you have access to that or whatever, it's super valuable. So that's really fascinating. Again, hopefully somebody out there is listening and they might be interested in getting that from you, or they may be someone who is listening and looking for ideas for their business, and I think you provided some good ones there.
Speaker 1:Thanks, sometimes I have good ideas. Yeah, yeah, absolutely I love those.
Speaker 2:So, um, you know what's what's something as you look ahead. You mentioned some goals for your business and, uh, is there anything there that you can share in terms of you know kind of what's in the dream pipeline?
Speaker 1:Um, I mean, besides doing more of the video, I would like to be able to pay myself. Um, I've been now almost four years. I'm just kind of like holding my own. Um, it's definitely, you know, going back to where I said I did my, my business plan and entrepreneurship and I way overestimated. Um, mostly, the way I pay myself right now is if there's a new project bag coming out, I buy myself an extra one to keep. You know what I mean, Um, and it's not like I'm saying like I want like my whole, my whole paycheck that I gave up when I left, uh, regular employment right.
Speaker 1:It would just be nice to have like a little bit of extra spending money. So that's something I'm actually working um through a retail coach to kind of go through, figure out finances like, really nail things down and kind of get a handle on. You know how I can move that needle forward for 2025. Yeah.
Speaker 2:That's really great and I appreciate the you know real talk. I mean, again, I think there's people out there that you know think that you just start something up and it, you know, the money starts flowing and all the bills get paid and there's a lot left over and you can kind of you know, if you own a business, you've got to be making money Right, and it's not always the case and you know it are in a fortunate position that you have the website business as well, that you're able to work on. You know, on slow days and you can kind of work that in. I think that's a great angle and something I'd encourage others to do. You know, to have a little diversity if possible, if you have another business opportunity or way to do a remote job or something, as you're getting something up and going to just have a couple different sources of income.
Speaker 2:That's, I think, wise to do, but also to be able to have the time to invest in the business. Again, there's always this balancing act and competing demands, right, right, right. I understand that. I've been in that position and seen others as well, so I'd encourage you to keep building. And then, thanks for sharing that as well.
Speaker 2:I mean, I think, that some people need to hear that and they might be in a position where they're discouraged, that they've been doing this for six months or a year or two years and they're not making what they want. They've been doing this for six months or a year or two years and they're, you know, not making what they want and, uh, you know, this is hopefully their encouragement as well to keep working at it and keep building and keep marketing and being creative. Uh, I think it's just uh, such an important part to just keep iterating and figuring out new ways to try to make things work.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Anything you would add to that that?
Speaker 1:you've discovered along the way? No, you covered it.
Speaker 2:Good. So I mean, what would you say to someone who might be considering a new venture? I mean, with what you've learned through this time and we've talked about some of the ups, some of the downs, some of the downs, some of the challenges you still have and some of the excitement for the future If they're considering like taking the leap, what would you tell them?
Speaker 1:Find a community. Not like you know, I have my shop community, but, like you know, we have the downtown business owner community where we can talk to each other and stuff Um having contacts with other people in your industry like I'm friends with yarn shops that are in Columbus and Cleveland.
Speaker 1:Like um, I have a yarn shop friend in St Louis and I can always message her and say, hey, like, are you noticing your sales are down or is this selling for you? Because I know that you brought this in too how are you marketing it? And everyone, especially in the yarn industry, has been really amazing about they're not holding that information tight. It's like community over competition and it's been very, very valuable Not just to get actual real-time feedback on product, but just to not feel like you're alone and that you're not struggling alone when you're wondering like, hey, is this actually worth it?
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I think that's really really good advice and you need that from day one.
Speaker 2:I think, because there's just so much that can be learned and I agree, I've encouraged other business owners to do that. I've done it myself. I've seen others do that successfully where they're networking with similar type business owners in other areas. You know, it's like not competitive and yeah, I mean, I agree, I've seen, even in our local community, retailers and different businesses working together and just exchanging ideas because it's like, hey, we're going to be better if we're all working together and just exchanging ideas.
Speaker 2:Because it's like hey, we're going to be better if we're all working together and just trying new things and trying to put on events together and it's just going to that. That rising tide is going to help everyone.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, that's really really great advice and, as we, as we kind of round out things as well, like I always like to ask guests because I'm also constantly learning and learning from your experiences and the things that you've discovered along your journey but is there a particular educational or inspirational resource that you found along the way that has been providing an outsized impact?
Speaker 1:So early on I think I got it on the digital library. It was a book called a thousand and one. What was it?
Speaker 1:A thousand and one retail ideas to create excitement or something along that effect and it's basically, you know, kind of talking about competing with online and how you can't really do that and how you need to focus on your local, you know, forming a business group with other business owners, things like that. But it has all these different things of promotions, like doing a Mother's Day promotion, but not even like the traditional things you would think of. Like Mother's Day there would be, like you know, an ice cream day or just random little ideas that maybe, if you're like stumped of, I should do some sort of marketing, but I don't know what it's been handy to just go back through and just pick one um just to kind of play with.
Speaker 1:Even if I don't do anything with it, it at least gets my creative juices going. Um, and then a podcast I tend to listen to is creative shop talk with Wendy Batten. Um, she is up in Nova Scotia and she used to run a creative shop Like she would sell paint and the you know furniture refinishing and whatnot, and she's one that I've found kind of gets my, my industry a little bit better, cause sometimes these retail coaches they're looking at it from like a boutique perspective of just selling merchandise. Retail coaches they're looking at it from like a boutique perspective of just selling merchandise Whereas I'm selling like the idea of something right, like the possibilities of what this yarn could turn into, and she kind of had that same same industry with her furniture and painting and whatnot. So I've really found a lot of value in her podcast. Just from knowing that she has a perspective, she can board things a little bit better for me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I love that. And again, just finding what resonates with with you, with your business, and what's going to be helpful and, um, I think those are sound like great resources. I love. I love the idea of just the a thousand one uh ideas just to like flip through there and, you know, spur some different creativity because, sometimes you get stumped and sometimes you know it's like I feel like I've tried everything.
Speaker 1:Well, here's another 900 and some things you probably haven't tried and so and even if you have tried it, maybe rereading it gives you a different perspective and you say, okay, let's try it again, but do it differently.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah. So much of this is just trying stuff, just doing stuff, just getting out there and like some things you know fly and some things flop.
Speaker 1:And we just have to be ready for that. It's fine. You still learn something from it, it's not a failure. It's a learning experience.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. I think that's the attitude we all have to have in business. So that's, that's really great. So yeah, so again, I think you've shared a lot about your shop. Hopefully there's some people out there that are somewhat local to here. Maybe they are a state away and they're like time for a road trip to go check this place out, tell a little bit about where they can find out more about Stitch and Skin and where you are physically. Are physically online, all that stuff yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:So uh, the shop is located at 144 west center street here in downtown marion. We're across from um. Amato's is kind of a good like landmark that I tell people because you know it's hard to. It's hard to find things downtown sometimes, uh, when you're not familiar with the area.
Speaker 2:Yeah, um, online. Yes, it's on a one-way street. Yeah, google, it's on a one-way street, yeah.
Speaker 1:Google likes to tell you to go under the overpass on Prospect Street and then park in the back lot.
Speaker 2:So that's always fun, oh, okay.
Speaker 1:Online stitchandskatingcom all one word that has online information about. You know my hours, location. You can shop online on there. You can contact me through there. Um, I'm on Facebook and Instagram. Um, I was on Tik TOK until they banned it, so I'm not sure what's going on with that. Um, and then you know, google things like that.
Speaker 2:Okay yeah, kind of all over the place. Yeah, yeah, yeah, so love that, and more videos likely coming this year, so we'll keep our eyes peeled for those and some more education coming out from you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, youtube channel coming soon, coming soon.
Speaker 2:Okay, you heard it here, All right, great. Well, thank you again, candice, for being with me. Thank you, for I mean, I feel like you got a lot of production done on, and what is it that you're?
Speaker 1:making a t-shirt. Okay, so I'm just working on the body of it, right now, right, yeah, so, uh, super cool getting up.
Speaker 2:Check this out on the youtube video. You can see, uh, all the progress she made during that time and I was mesmerized so it was awesome. So thanks again, candace, and thank you all of our listeners. Hopefully you took some things away. Please give us some feedback. Share with us in the comments what you've learned along the way here. We would sure appreciate your rating and review, as always and sharing if there's someone else who might benefit from some of the conversation and tips and ideas that we shared on this episode. Hope to see you around on the next one. Thanks again. Thanks for listening to the Main Street Reimagined podcast. To learn more about Main Street Reimagined Henry Development Group or our work in downtown Marion, ohio, please visit MainStreetReimaginedcom. If you want to connect or if you know someone who we need to interview, shoot us an email at info at MainStreetReimaginecom. Until next time, keep dreaming and don't be afraid to take the leap.