It sounds cliché to say another year has passed and where has the time gone, but at Embroider Buddy®, I’m sitting here thinking: “Wow, how did the year pass by so quickly, and how did we manage to fit in so many exciting travels, events, and new products in 2015?”
A road more travelled
This past year was one of the busiest ever for travelling. I had the pleasure of visiting the United Kingdom, China, Australia, and of course, many trips to our neighbours to the south—the United States. My visit to the International Quilt Market in Texas was a recent highlight—it was nice to cross this off my bucket list and leave with lots of inspiration!
The best part of travelling is meeting new people and hearing or seeing their ideas for Embroider Buddy®. It’s through this feedback and creativity that I’m inspired to launch new products.
2015: a year of new products
On that note, there was no shortage of new products and collections over the past 12 months. The number of products that we offer grew substantially, and we expanded into new product territory with the launch of Embroider Buddy® Home pillows. These Easy as 1-2-3 embroidable pillows have been a hot seller and a welcomed addition for those who want a home décor accent.
For the holidays, we launched the Embroider Buddy® Holiday collection of traditional and chic stockings. How many of you have these hanging from your mantels this Christmas? Be sure to take a picture and share them in our Facebook Customer Gallery.
We also added several new Embroider Buddy® stuffed animals to our collection, including Hedley Hedgehog, Buster Bulldog, Peyton Panda, Kerry Kangaroo, Zachary Zebra and Okie Owl with the option for customers to download free Embroider Buddy® Charms. I admit that Okie is my personal favourite and it seems like many customers agree. We’ve had so much interest for this bright-eyed owl. I’m excited to see how Okie comes to life with your embroidery creations!
What’s ahead for 2016?
There’s much to be excited for in the year ahead, starting with the 16th Annual Toronto Imprint Canada Show on January 8 and 9 at the Toronto Congress Centre. Embroider Buddy® will be one of 125 exhibitors—you can find us at the Parkdale Novelty Co. Ltd booth.
February is a busy month of tradeshows in Europe, starting with the TecStyle Visions show from February 4-6 in Stuttgart, Germany. Then, I’ll be travelling to the Printwear and Promotion Live show in the United Kingdom at the end of February. Our booths will feature sample products to touch and feel, and you can meet some of our newest buddies, like Okie Owl. I love to travel and meet new people, so I hope to see meet many new friends, fans and familiar faces at all these shows.
On another note, we’ve been working on a website ‘reno’ and we think you’ll love the fresh design. Stay tuned for this new website coming soon. We also have some new products and a new collection in the works, but I’ll keep those a secret for now. You’ll just have to keep checking in to the blog to find out what’s ahead!
My 2016 New Year’s Wish
Embroiderers around the world could touch, feel and embroider an Embroider Buddy® from my stuffed animal collection. Then they would give the buddy to a child to hug…
No matter what your resolution may be for 2016, I hope you have a wonderful year ahead of creativity, happiness and health. I look forward to sharing more special moments with you in 2016!