While some still do it all by hand, sewing and quilting have incorporated the latest technologies, providing users with unlimited designs and possibilities.

“They can do more things because of the computer, and they can do them faster. It’s just the ultimate in creativity,” said Anita Covert, president of Country Stitches in East Lansing.

“And the quality is just wonderful,” added Brian Ladson, vice president.

Covert has had an opportunity to see all of the technological development since she opened Country Stitches over 25 years ago with her then 11-year-old daughter, Ann Covert Drane, who is now the education director. Ladson, who started out as a service technician and moved into sales, became a partner eight years ago.

“Customers always wanted to be creative, and our customers want to make things for their families,” said Covert. “They always wanted to embellish their clothing, and they’ve wanted to make memories and things that their families could pass down. Quilts have been something that when someone makes them, they’re really making a memory.”

“They used to be able to put hand embroidery on their clothes. Now the machines actually can do it,” added Ladson.

With another store in Jackson, Country Stitches is not only renowned in mid-Michigan, but also is known internationally for its classes and quilting and sewing supplies.

“We offer over 1,500 courses a year,” said Covert. “That would be thousands of people. They come from several states. We [recently] had some people from North Dakota in our classes. We’ve got a group coming in from Australia in October. Two people came here last October to check it out, and they’re bringing a group back. We often have Canadians come over for classes, too.”

“The classes range from owner’s courses on how to use the machines to project classes and quilting classes,” said Ladson.

“They’re all offered here or at our other location in Jackson,” added Covert. “One of the reasons we’ve succeeded for so long is our promotions. We advertise a lot. We have a newsletter we send out six times a year to 60,000 people who have been in our store from Michigan, Indiana and Ohio.”

The equipment the store carries is also from all over the world and comes in a variety of price ranges.

“We started as a quilt shop and then added sewing machines in 1984. We’ve become one of the largest sewing machine dealers in the United States and one of the largest quilt shops in the United States,” Covert stated. “We currently carry four lines of sewing machines, and we carry three lines of premium sewing machines. We carry Pfaff, which is German engineered; Husqvarna Viking, which is made in Sweden; and Baby Lock, which are Japanese engineered sewing machines. We also carry Singer sewing machines, which are less expensive, because we want to offer a wide range to compete with the large box stores. So if a person wants to do really creative things, then we have machines that have a wide range of capability. They could do almost anything now with computerized sewing machines. We also have the software that goes on your personal computer, where you can do all kinds of creative things and then stitch them out on your sewing machine. We’ve seen tremendous change in our 25 years.”

Adding the computerization has apparently also added more men to the customer base.

“A lot of husbands help their wives with generating designs on the computer,” Ladson noted.

Additionally, Country Stitches carries other items to bring new customers into the store.

“We carry a lot of gift items to appeal to different types of people,” Covert explained. “Right now, we’re carrying Webkinz, which are little stuffed animals where kids or adults get a code and can go on the Internet and play games with their Internet animal. They [were] one of the most popular gift items this Christmas. What that means to us is that lots of kids come into the store that ordinarily wouldn’t. It introduces them to sewing and to the concepts of the things that we do. We find this really exciting, so we’re always looking for different ways to introduce people to the creative area of sewing, and this is one of the ways we do that.”

“We do kids’ classes, too,” noted Ladson.

“One of the things we’re currently offering is to make blankets or quilts for your Webkinz,” said Covert. “So we’re tying these popular stuffed animals in with sewing or quilting.”

While there are more men in the customer base, Country Stitches’ clients are still mainly women. “Traditionally our customers have been females, and we have a lot of professional women who really enjoy sewing because it’s really relaxing,” Covert noted. “They’re in high-stress jobs and they’re looking for some leisure time activities where they create a product that brings pleasure to them. It’s low stress and it’s fun.”

“Our customers also introduce their friends to the store and come in to meet or to take a class together,” said Ladson.

“They love the camaraderie,” said Covert.

A PhD who used to be on the faculty at Michigan State University, Covert originally opened the store part time. “I started quilting and really enjoyed it and then also enjoyed the business end of it,” she said. “I found I really liked retail and liked the challenges of being a small business person. We just grew from there.”

Her efforts have not only paid off in growing the business but in earning her recognition as well. Covert was the 2000 recipient of the Michigan Small Business Person Award, the 1999 Lansing Small Business Person of the Year and a winner of the Entrepreneurial Awards of Greater Lansing in 1995.

“We think Lansing is a good environment, and the location is good because it’s in the center of the state,” she explained. “We are a destination. One of the keys to our success, of course, has been the great staff we have working for us. We have great people who have given great customer service.”

Country Stitches has about 35 people on staff between its two stores.

After a year of celebrating the store’s silver anniversary, Covert is now looking ahead.

“The next 25 years will be lots of fun,” she said. “We can’t even fathom all of the new things that are coming out. The sewing machines are getting bigger and better, and the fabric is getting more beautiful with deeper colors in the dyes. They’re just getting better and more beautiful all the time. The machines are getting easier to use. and the tools are making it easier, faster and more fun.”