January 25, 2021
The Colorado chapter invited ASDP’s VP of Development, Julie Hansberry, to its January meeting. Julie has been sewing since 2nd grade and recently shifted from a career in marketing to open her sewing business. She spoke about several opportunities to expand ASDP to other sewing-related industries.
There is a niche available for us to help designers who are not ready to start large-scale factory manufacturing. They often need help transitioning designs to samples and technical specs for the factories. But for many of us, the factories speak a different language, making it difficult for us to help each other without additional education. As another opportunity, she will be reaching out to JoAnn’s, because JoAnn’s is often the only local store for buying fabric for many who sew. Julie also noted the large number of people on social media who own cottage industries to sew a wide range of items and might be interested in joining ASDP.
For these reasons, and to advance this diversity within ASDP, the board is considering liaison groups to foster communication with these other parts of the sewing industry. The board, she reported, wants ASDP to be open to all who profit from the sewing industry.