12/05/2022
Farewell, Sew Pretty by Mak ❤️
First off - Thank you. I am so grateful for everyone’s love and support over the past two years. Secondly, this is a long post. Writing this post has given me all the feels. I’m thrilled for what the future holds yet I’m nervous to officially announce the closure of Sew Pretty by Mak.
Over the past two years I have worked SO hard to bring Sew Pretty by Mak to where it is today. I have poured my heart and soul into this small business and to say the least, it has been the most incredible journey. Sew Pretty by Mak grew so quickly. What seemed like over night, I was an entrepreneur. When I started this business, I really had no idea what I was getting myself into - literally no idea.
Starting Sew Pretty by Mak, I had no experience sewing and absolutely no experience in the marketing world. Thanks to the help of my friends, family & community by sharing, liking, ordering and talking about my products, I all of a sudden was making scrunchies in very high volume. Not only were the people in my life super amazing, the Small Business Community I now was apart of, was incredibly supportive. I have met SO many wonderful people over the past two years. It’s really hard to explain the Small Business Community love we have for one another. I’m very grateful to have experienced this.
For the first year of my business journey I was still working full time with UCDSB and I was finding it very difficult to keep up with both jobs. My amazing mom stepped in and started sewing for me. My Stepdad started threading all the elastics in my scrunchies and Aaron was helping me with it all. What was once a single person job that quickly turned into a 4 person operation. We started attending local markets which was incredible for my business. Of course, I couldn’t do these alone and the 4 of us took on 15 markets in 2021.
When 2022 came, I knew I needed to make a change. I knew I couldn’t keep up to my two full time jobs. Working 8-4 in a Kindergarten classroom, driving home and working all evening, everyday, was wearing on me. In April 2022, I decided to take a temporary leave from UCDSB and focus solely on Sew Pretty. This transition was amazing! I could literally sew all day. Putting all my focus on my business was exciting! Being at home had truly allowed my business to grow even farther. 2022 brought us a lot of wholesale and retail sales to the business. This is what I wanted! Not only did I sell my products on my website and at markets, I was now selling in stores!
My scrunchies were doing well but I felt I needed to bring something new to the table. I started making headbands and bringing new collections to our store. Expanding our products was exciting. I was thrilled to bring new handmade things to my shop!
I was so driven and determined to “succeed” I started signing Sew Pretty up for more and more vendor events. Between March and December we have done over 30 markets in 2022. While some of these were one day events, others were three days. As anyone could imagine, this was a lot. A lot of weekends working, a lot of prep getting things ready and a lot of work sewing to keep up with it all. I knew it was getting too much but I’ve always had the attitude “go big or go home.”
This fall, as a team, we discussed something needed to change. We had to either hire more staff or make changes. I knew I wanted to enjoy life with Aaron & our 3 dogs. I knew I wanted to spend more time on our home that we recently bought together. I knew I wanted to see my friends and family more. I knew my heart missed my ECE career. I knew it was time to step back.
This decision wasn’t easy. It’s extremely hard to walk away from something I have poured everything into over the past two years. However, I truly believe this is for the best. I’m beyond grateful. I really found it hard to put my thoughts down in words explaining how grateful I am for everyone’s support and love over the past two years.
The biggest Thank You goes out to my Mom, Lesley and Stepdad, Brent. These two have been by my side through it all. They never missed a market as well as being so busy working for me. They are a HUGE part of making Sew Pretty by Mak so successful. Another big Thank You goes to my boyfriend, Aaron. The wooden stand making guy who is always here to help. Thank You to my family and friends for helping with markets/events. At times, we would do two events in one day and there would be 6 of us managing our booths.
Will I miss it? 100% YES.
Will I miss the amazing friends that this business brought me? 100% YES.
Am I excited for my future back within UCDSB? 100% YES. It’s very clear to me my heart belongs in Kindergarten.
Our closing date is still to be determined. We expect to be open until roughly February 2023. Between now and then, we won’t be making anything new or doing any restocks. Don’t worry, we still will be making our Holiday Stocking before Christmas.
If you’ve made it this far in my mini novel, thank you for taking the time to read it all. As a team, we are very proud of Sew Pretty by Mak. Between Jan 2021 and Dec 2022 we have handmade just over 20,000 units. This is a huge accomplishment for us.
We will be attending our FINAL market this Saturday. We will downtown Kemptville from 10:00-2:00. Come see us for our farewell market!!
Thank you for being so supportive of Sew Pretty by Mak. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts🤍
Sew Pretty by Mak
Makayla, Aaron, Lesley & Brent
