Putting her stamp on it
Windsor store utopia for paper-crafters
PAUL PICKREM SPECIAL TO THE VALLEY HARVESTER
The last remaining papercraft store in the region is continuing to attract loyal customers from across Canada.
Kelly Hilchey-wilson, the owner of My Stamping Studio, located at 93 Centennial Dr., Unit 1 in Windsor, said in a recent interview she has been in business for 10 years, offering a wide selection of papercraft supplies for customers who enjoy card making, scrapbooking and mini album making.
She said she enjoys making cards and scrapbooking herself. However, she also enjoys owning her own business and using her retail experience.
The store is open seven days a week and has a full-time employee who helps Hilcheywilson and her husband keep up with the steady flow of papercraft enthusiasts.
Although many craft stores have struggled to compete with big-box stores and online craft stores, My Stamping Studio continues to thrive while others have closed or turned into home-based businesses.
“I'm the only brick and mortar store left in Atlantic Canada. I don't compete with the bigbox stores. They don't carry the brands and the products I carry,” Hilchey-wilson said. “I am steady from January right through until December every year. I think a lot of ladies have a craft budget, and they spend that every month.”
Hilchey-wilson said she ships orders as far away as Vancouver. She also sets up her store at major Canadian craft events in Moncton and Cornwall, Ontario, every year.
My Stamping Studio also offers a wide range of instructional opportunities to its customers, including product demos in the store, which has a classroom, and weekend retreats at local venues, which often feature big names in the papercraft industry.
“Customers get to meet the big names they see on videos and Youtube and hang out with them for a weekend and work with the products, “Hilcheywilson said. “And, you can pop in any day, and I will demo any product you would like to see.”
Theresa Richard, of Eastern Passage, has been scrapbooking and card making for about 10 years. During an interview, she said she never misses the weekend events.
“When I discovered Kelly's store, it was like a utopia for me. She has the customer service, the product selection, and she has the entertainment value because when she throws these weekends, they are very entertaining,” Richard said.
“The way to get someone to want your product is to show them how to use it.”
Kathy Macmillan, of Dartmouth, enjoys the personal touch offered by Hilchey-wilson and her staff that she doesn't get at a big-box store or while shopping online.
“It's nice when you walk through the door, and somebody greets you with, ‘Hi Kathy.' She remembers everybody's name.”
Hilchey-wilson said she communicates with her customers on Facebook daily and even posts demos as well as information about upcoming events.