Gosh it is scary how fast 12 years flies by. For my 40th birthday I convinced Paul to finish the basement so I could have a nice big studio. I had taken about 20 quilting classes, and was toying with the idea of getting a longarm machine. In the meantime Paul was managing a local business and I had 2 and 9 year old boys running around the house.

After leaving my career as an import fashion designer – moving from New York City to Boulder – and starting a family – I was anxious to start a new business that involved fabric, color and design. Right after I turned 40 when the basement was finished, I got this hairbrained idea about Paul designing a website for us, and then I would sell fabric out of our basement as a part-time job while I stayed home with the kids.

Well as you know, the rest is history. We went to the bank with a 32 page business plan, got a 2nd mortgage, and opened up our online shop on March 10, 1999. Within 60 days we had exceeded our 3 year business plan. I remember about a month after we opened, I was downstairs at 1 am, cutting and wrapping packages. Paul came down, watched me silently for awhile, then said "I think it is ok to hire employees now."

By October we had moved into a 4500 sq ft warehouse, a year and a half later we moved into another 11,000 sq ft warehouse, and a year and a half later we expanded to 15,000 sq ft including my new studio on the 2nd floor over the eQuilter warehouse. We felt like we had a tiger by the tail, and all we could do was just hang on and see how far this ride would take us.

Today we have customers all over the world, and an amazing staff of 38 people who answer your questions in Customer Service up front, order the hottest collections through the Buying Department, pull and cut your orders in the warehouse, and ship out thousands of packages every month. We are all very proud of our position in the industry, and we know that we maintain that position by working hard to keep you happy, year-round.

Most importantly, we are a family business, and we believe in sharing our success by giving back to those in need. Together with your support, we have raised and donated $864,000 so far, and it is very exciting to see that big goal of $1 million dollars coming into focus for 2012.

We know that you put love into every stitch when you use our fabrics to make quilts, sew garments, and craft gifts for your loved ones. As you know, we put a little eQuilter love in every package that goes out, so when you open your package, you know there is a team of 40 people on this end (including Paul and myself) who truly appreciate the opportunity to serve you, and share our mutual love of beautiful fabrics.

Thanks for coming along on the ride with us!