Craft to Career – Details, episodes & analysis

In this inspiring episode of the Craft to Career podcast, Elizabeth Chappell chats with Kimberly Jolly, founder and CEO of Fat Quarter Shop, one of the most recognized quilting retailers in the world.

Kimberly shares her journey from running a small eBay fabric store out of her home to leading a thriving business that serves quilters across the globe. She opens up about how the company began, what fueled its rapid growth, and the strategies that helped it stay strong in a changing industry.

Whether you're a fabric lover, pattern designer, or entrepreneur in the creative space, this conversation is packed with wisdom, encouragement, and practical advice.

• The Origin Story: How Fat Quarter Shop started as a small home-based business and grew into one of the world's leading online quilting retailers.

• The Evolving Quilting Industry: Kimberly's perspective on how the quilting landscape is changing—and what trends are shaping its future.

• What Fat Quarter Shop Looks For: As one of the top buyers in the quilting world, Kimberly shares what makes a product truly stand out.

• What's Missing in the Industry: Insight into the gaps Kimberly sees in today's market and opportunities for creative entrepreneurs to fill them.

• Words of Wisdom for Entrepreneurs: The key lessons Kimberly wishes she had known when she first started—and how you can apply them to your own business journey.

Kimberly Jolly is the founder of Fat Quarter Shop, a leading online quilt and fabric retailer known for its vast selection, YouTube tutorials, and beloved community of quilters. With her deep love for quilting and dedication to exceptional service, Kimberly has built a brand synonymous with creativity, quality, and innovation in the quilting world.

SHOW LINKS

• FloDesk – Save 50% on your first year of using my favorite email marketing provider. Code: QUILTERSCANDY
• Kajabi – Teaching a course or starting a membership? Kajabi is THE platform I use and love! Try it for free with my affiliate link.

Meet Jessica and Aiden, the creative duo and owners of Thimtec, a company that's redefining how quilters protect their fingers! Thimtec's signature fabric thimble has quickly gained attention in the quilting world for its comfort, innovation, and thoughtful design.

Jessica and Aiden share how their year-old company came to life — from the spark of an idea to a thriving small business. You'll hear about the challenges and wins of developing a physical product, their strategies for growing an audience and boosting sales, and what they wish they'd known before starting out.

Whether you're an inventor, a creative entrepreneur, or a curious quilter, you'll love this inspiring story of perseverance, innovation, and community connection.

• How the idea for the Thimtec fabric thimble was born

• What it takes to bring a physical product to market

• The marketing and social media strategies that helped Thimtec grow fast

• How they handle production, fulfillment, and customer feedback

• The biggest lessons learned during their first year in business

• Jessica and Aiden's best advice and biggest warning for makers who want to sell physical products

• Website: Visit here

• Instagram: @thimtec

Shop the Thimtec Fabric Thimble: Click Here

• FloDesk - Save 50% on your first year of using my favorite email marketing provider. Code: QUILTERSCANDY
• Kajabi - Teaching a course or starting a membership? Kajabi is THE platform I use and love! Try it for free with my affiliate link.

Let's talk about email lists—why you need one, how to grow it, and what to actually send. I'll walk you through my best-performing opt-ins (including the one I keep sharing even though I think everyone already has it), ideas for what to say in your emails, and how to sound like a real human being—not a robot. Plus, I'll share the #1 rule when it comes to building your list: be kind to yourself. Small steps matter.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why email is more powerful than social media (when done right)

• How to pick an opt-in that attracts the right people

• The real secret to writing emails people actually enjoy

• My go-to email content ideas when I'm not sure what to say

• How to get started with my course, FloDesk Made Easy

Resources mentioned:

• FloDesk Made Easy – My course to help you create opt-ins and send emails with confidence

• Free Gingham Quilt Pattern – My most popular opt-in!

• Kajabi Course - My FREE course teaching how to use Kajabi for selling online courses and memberships

Who we surround ourselves with makes all the difference in not only our personal lives, but our business lives as well. In episode 96, I talk about how the people we associate with and what we choose to listen to, plays a role in how we show up, how we view the world and ultimately who we become.  Don't miss tips and ideas on how to be successful in life and actually achieve your potential. 

Turn your CRAFT into a CAREER!

Did you find this podcast helpful? Find more creative business takeaways, tutorials, courses, plus much more below. 

SHOW NOTES:

https://quilterscandy.com/podcast/

QUILTERS CANDY WEBSITE:

https://quilterscandy.com/

INSTAGRAM:

Craft to Career Podcast @crafttocareer

Quilters Candy @quilters_candy

Michelle, the Founder and Owner of Michelle Fernandez Media, is a Facebook & Instagram Ad Strategists. She really know her stuff! Michelle shares tips for business success with some marketing strategies sprinkled in as well on Episode 95. Her marketing agency is all about driving more traffic and demand for your offers and help you become more visable to the masses. 

I am excited to to have Michelle on the podcast as she is such a telented marketing expert and has so much value to offer! 

Turn your CRAFT into a CAREER!

Did you find this podcast helpful? Find more creative business takeaways, tutorials, courses, plus much more below. 

SHOW NOTES:

https://quilterscandy.com/podcast/

QUILTERS CANDY WEBSITE:

https://quilterscandy.com/

INSTAGRAM:

Craft to Career Podcast @crafttocareer

Quilters Candy @quilters_candy

In episode 94, I interview Stacy Tuschl who shares insightful information about how to run your business better.

Stacy Tuschl started her own business at the age of 18 in her parents' backyard and turned that company into a multi-million dollar business she still runs today.  Stacy is a bestselling author, and founder of Well Oiled Operations - helping small business owners around the world create systems that facilitate growth by promoting team accountability and eliminating the common challenge of the CEO's time and energy limitations becoming the bottleneck in scaling the business. The top rated Well Oiled Operations podcast now has almost 2 million downloads where she's interviewed guests like Suze Orman.  Stacy was named the 2019 Wisconsin Small Business Person of the Year by the United States Small Business Administration.

I am excited to have Stacy on the Craft to Career Podcast to talk about how you can run your business better!

Turn your CRAFT into a CAREER!

Did you find this podcast helpful? Find more creative business takeaways, tutorials, courses, plus much more below. 

SHOW NOTES:

https://quilterscandy.com/podcast/

QUILTERS CANDY WEBSITE:

https://quilterscandy.com/

INSTAGRAM:

Craft to Career Podcast @crafttocareer

Quilters Candy @quilters_candy

This week we talk about owning an online business and what that looks like. Episode 93, Online Marketing with Fabric Shop Owner Laura of Global Fiber Shop, is full of ideas and helpful information- especially if you are thinking about opening up a new online creative business yourself. 

I am excited to introduce you to Laura! 

Turn your CRAFT into a CAREER!

Did you find this podcast helpful? Find more creative business takeaways, tutorials, courses, plus much more below. 

SHOW NOTES:

https://quilterscandy.com/podcast/

QUILTERS CANDY WEBSITE:

https://quilterscandy.com/

INSTAGRAM:

Craft to Career Podcast @crafttocareer

Quilters Candy @quilters_candy

Six months ago, I held a Coaching Call with Jemima Flendt. Hear what she has learned, implemented and pivoted with and found success with. She shares her process as well as some exciting things happening in her business. Learn from her experiences and apply those things into your business. Find out more on this week's podcast, episode 92. 

Turn your CRAFT into a CAREER!

Did you find this podcast helpful? Find more creative business takeaways, tutorials, courses, plus much more below. 

SHOW NOTES:

https://quilterscandy.com/podcast/

QUILTERS CANDY WEBSITE:

https://quilterscandy.com/

INSTAGRAM:

Craft to Career Podcast @crafttocareer

Quilters Candy @quilters_candy

Curious about the process of hiring and how to find the right fit for you and your business? On episode 91, Meet My Team Part 2, Elizabeth continues interviewing the rest of the Quilters Candy team. Hear more about what the process has been to find and formulate a team that helps her business succeed and just what I she has hired help to do so that she has more time to grow her business. This week, meet Anna Brown, Shereece Spain, Serena Shoup, and Misty Meng. PLUS don't miss the free PDF download that offers help, tips and guidance to better assist you in finding employee's for your business. 

Turn your CRAFT into a CAREER!

Did you find this podcast helpful? Find more creative business takeaways, tutorials, courses, plus much more below. 

SHOW NOTES:

https://quilterscandy.com/podcast/

QUILTERS CANDY WEBSITE:

https://quilterscandy.com/

INSTAGRAM:

Craft to Career Podcast @crafttocareer

Quilters Candy @quilters_candy

This week, I take you behind the scenes and interview some of my employees (the other half to follow in a few weeks). I'm excited for you to meet Jamie McPheeters, Shannon Boyer and Kelli Marshall. In Episode 90, find out how I found them, what they do for me and ideas that I hope you find helpful when you are ready to hire help for your business.

Turn your CRAFT into a CAREER!

Did you find this podcast helpful? Find more creative business takeaways, tutorials, courses, plus much more below. 

SHOW NOTES:

https://quilterscandy.com/podcast/

QUILTERS CANDY WEBSITE:

https://quilterscandy.com/

INSTAGRAM:

Craft to Career Podcast @crafttocareer

Quilters Candy @quilters_candy