Meet Daniel Steigman | Quilt Shop Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Daniel Steigman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Daniel, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
We live in a rural area, in the high desert, in Arizona. There are 12,000 people in our town and a few towns surround us in the Verde Valley. Our town, chose to remain a small town, not allowing many businesses of size come in. Instead, these businesses went to a much more business centered community 17 miles away. This situation has left our town in a state where we are unable to purchase many things, forcing us to travel to other areas or use online stores for many of the things we purchase. When we came to our town, you couldn’t buy a decent spool of thread or many of the other items needed for sewing, quilting, embroidery. However, there was and is a large community of sewers in our area that were under served and left with few choices to meet their crafting desires.

When we came along, we just wanted to enjoy our retirement, sew and embroider and make things that we could give to family and friends. We rented our first shop space for our own purposes, with no intention of going back in to business. It was nice. It was quiet. We were able to do what seemed best to us after working very hard for many years. Then came Covid-19 and a dream. I dreamed, one night, of once again taking on sewing machine repairs. I didn’t want to do it. I really didn’t. I thought I had given up that life. But through a set of unusual circumstances, it was made clear that we were needed to serve once again and we opened our shop up to the outside world again.

I started fixing sewing machines. My wife started doing machine quilting for others. Soon, it was decided that if we were going to repair machines, we should then sell new sewing machines for those who could not have their machines repaired. The next thing I knew, we were having to move to a new store front, in the towns main shopping center, and that was the beginning of where we are today.

Since that time, our store has become a real part of our community. We embroider many of the school uniforms, machine quilt many of the quilts, sell and repair many sewing machines, provide fabric and sewing notions to our area. People come to our store to share their stories, get help with many tasks, benefit by the business cards for other businesses in our area that are available to them, and provide the opportunity to purchase goods locally instead of having to travel all over the country to get needs met.

We have been working this business through Covid and beyond and are now actively working to rebuild community through our location. We offer our class area for free to people who want to come in and craft, to share their lives, once again. We work to connect people to others who can assist them in life and befriend them in the process. We often help people out, expecting nothing in return, believing that being good people is better than being good business people. Certainly, we would like our business to pay for itself, but for the last 5 years, we have centered on the people way more than what we can get from them.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Our business is a small town quilt and embroidery shop. We have been here for 5 years and have tried everyday to improve. I think it surprises some who enter to find out that I, a male person, am running the place but as soon as they find out I fix sewing machines, they are okay with that. My wife, is an excellent machine quilter. She has offered her services at prices that shock most people. She tells them that if she charged today’s rates on quilting, many of the poor little ladies in our area would never be able to get something quilted. She invests her heart and soul into her work and it is obvious to all who see it. I fix things. I order things. I embroider LOTS of things. We are all about serving our community, helping our neighbors and making new friends.

Here is an example. People bring their sick sewing machines in for me to repair. I put them on a table outside of my workroom, ask the people what is going on with their machine, and then proceed to do a quick check. If I can fix it right there on that table, I never charge them. When asked what they owe me, I tell them that I never ask for payment from my friends when I fix their machine on that table. They say things like, “I have never met you before, or but that isn’t good for business.” I tell them that I like to help my friends and then I ask them directly, “You are my friend now, right?” I sure make a lot of friends!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I really can’t say. I moved here not knowing that I have serious altitude sickness issues. I can’t go to some of the greatest places like the Grand Canyon, Flagstaff, and all the other fun places around here. Also, I basically work 7 days a week between the shop and my church. However, there are some great food places here. My favorite is Udderly Divine Cafe & Bakery. Best Roast Beef sandwich I have ever had!
We have Out of Africa Wildlife Park that is a fun place to visit. Montezuma’s Castle and Montezuma’s Well attract all sorts of attention. I have heard only good things about the Verde Canyon Railroad Adventure. I wish I could go on that one!

I don’t know much about where I live but I love living here.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There are many people that have made this business a success but there is one person from the community that has done more than any others to help us succeed and prosper. Her name is Tammy.

Tammy and I met one day, when she, as one of my first customers, brought in a machine for me to service. She saw me struggling with a computer program that she was familiar with. I told her that although I had previously done quite a bit of work with this program, it had been some time and I simply couldn’t remember everything I needed to get the results I was after. Through that conversation, I agreed to fix her machine as a trade for her assistance with the program. During that time, we moved to our current location, and Tammy started coming in and assisting me with the store. The next thing I knew, she was here continuously and helped make this the place it is today.

I knew the quilt shop world and Tammy was a very creative and artistic person who could take little and make much from it. Where I was socially backwards, she was able to involve herself with those who came into the store, either knowing them outright or by the time they left the store. She shared the same feelings about serving those around her in need as we did and was well liked by those who came into our shop.

I really wanted Tammy to take over the shop when she was ready. No cost to her at all. The place is paid for. But after 4 years+ together here, she recognized that taking on the shop would be too much for her. However, as she is able she still comes in and assists us here and brings a little happiness to those who enter.

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