Retirement? Ummmm...No!

There has been a lot of buzz around the shop lately.  We are expanding!  It is fun to be a part the upcoming expansion of the shop.  I find it a bit bittersweet as we see some of our long time friends and shops retiring/closing.  On the drive home the other day I was pondering the entire situation.  Retirement...me?  (BTW I am 62)  I love what I do, so much that it fills all my hours at the shop as well as many hours at home.  While the thought of retirement makes me a bit curious as to what it "might" be like, I know that after about 2 weeks I would be looking for a new adventure.  So here it is my "retirement" adventure:  to expand the store in 2020.

I am indeed blessed in so many ways.  I have a supportive husband/family.  I am lucky to have daughter Suzie as my business partner, Joy our fabulous shop manager and all the wonderful staff makes Pine Needles what it is today.

Over the years all of us together, staff and peeps,  have been on a wild and exciting ride finally landing here at home in Rochester, MN.  

Dear to my heart is the original flagship location in Cresco, Ia.   I was first a customer and later ended up being the shop owner.  Still a favorite ambiance with its high tin ceiling and the original creaky wood floor boards. We had many happy days here.

In 2007 we added a second location in Racine, MN.  15 minutes from Rochester in a fun space shared with a local restaurant (Harla's) and antique shop.  We were located on a busy highway and many folks made the drive from Rochester to our shop.  

2009 marked the year we moved the Iowa shop from Cresco to Decorah.  A lovely town with a bustling main street, filled great folksy, friendly people.

Whew... I thought we had it made (and we did!) 2 successful shops, one in Iowa and one in Minnesota.  Life was good.

Then... we had the pleasure of getting a visit from H P Ueltschi 3rd generation owner of Bernina, visiting us at the Racine MN shop all the way from Switzerland.  He sat with Suzie & I for quite some time (in Harla's restaurant) discussing with us all of the reasons we should move our store into the city limits of Rochester.  Well after a lot of thought and prayer, we took his advice, and the rest as they say is history.  In 2012 we moved our Racine shop into our current space right here in Rochester.

Rochester has been such a good fit for us, the store seemed to just blossom and continues to grow every year.  With the growth Suzie and I soon realized it was difficult to manage both stores (they were about an hour and 20 minute drive apart).  Together we made the decision to sell the Iowa location in 2013 to another Mom & daughter team. They still own and operate in the same location as Red-Roxy Quilt Co.

2020 is just around the corner and it will mark 21 years of Pine Needles.  We are so looking forward to another milestone moment as we expand and remodel Pine Needles Quilt & Sew to twice its current size.  We are all thrilled and excited!

Come on along Peeps!  Suzie, Joy, our marvelous staff and I are going to take you on another exciting experience as we travel down the PNQS road into the future!  Guaranteed smiles ahead.

Blessings, 

M

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