Spotlight on: Beth Gantz, Stitches ETC and Beth Gantz Designs
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| Beth Gantz |
Walking into Stitches ETC in Bay Village, OH, on a muggy June afternoon is a welcome respite from the construction and traffic congestion going on just a few hundred yards away. Owner Beth Gantz notes that officials have assured her and other business owners in the Dover Center plaza that the interruption is temporary and that the road resurfacing and sewer work will be more than worth the brief inconvenience.
Inside the quiet, soothing shop environment, Stitches ETC customers can leave traffic behind and instead focus on the various array of needlepoint patterns and accessories, admiring the recent switch to Christmas-themed products. Before another rain shower hits, one customer rushes in with a large finished canvas, ready for a custom frame.
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| Framing services are an integral part of Stitches ETC's business. |
"Framing is a huge part of our business," Gantz notes. "Our framer, Joan Schneider, is extremely talented. She often does custom orders, doing such special touches as handpainted soccer balls on a mat for a soccer team photo, for example. It's not just needlepoint; whatever the customer wants framed, we can do it."
Gantz is the daughter of Carol Gantz, a former president of The National NeedleArts Association and former shop owner herself. While the younger Gantz admits that growing up, she was probably one of the only kids around with a dollhouse that had a successful needlepoint shop downstairs, "with Ken making a really cute UPS man," she was determined to have a different career path than her mom had. She got her bachelor's degree in psychology, and her master's degree in education and adult development.
"I didn't stitch for a long time, but I always came back to it," Gantz admits.
Then, after 6 years in the educational field, Beth Gantz got an offer she just couldn't refuse.
Carol Gantz, who is currently a needlepoint designer and partner in Associated Talents, was very good friends with Liz Ryan, the original owner of Stitches ETC. "Liz wanted to retire, and I had been wanting to open a store. I just jumped at the opportunity," Beth Gantz remembers. "That was four years ago, and I've never looked back. Liz is still a mentor to me, and I'm very grateful for her guidance — as well as my mom's and many other wonderful people I've met over the years in this industry."
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| Many of Beth Gantz's patterns are designed to embellish totes in an array of colors and styles. |
Current road construction aside, relocating from a longtime location in Westlake, OH, to nearby Bay Village proved to be a good move for Stitches ETC and its six employees. "It's a location that is easy to get to, and the plaza is always teeming with people," Gantz says. "We have our loyal customer base, but we get quite a few walk-ins, too."
Gantz had obviously grown up stitching, but she knew many of her friends and former work colleagues were hesitant about whether they could make it a hobby. "I wanted to carry patterns for beginners that weren't intimidating, but were still stylish," she recalls, "and I just wasn't finding what I had in mind. I went to my mom and said, 'Please show me how to design a pattern,' and she did." The result was Beth Gantz Designs, which began two years ago and has since taken Gantz's career to new heights.
"I guess I'm on my way to becoming a national teacher," she laughs, noting that she held classes this spring at a shop in North Carolina, with more scheduled in the fall in the Carolinas and Michigan. Her signature monogram patterns have been a particular hit with stitchers in their 20s and 30s, although she notes students have been of all ages. "I have moms and daughters and grandmas each making a tote bag. I have brides making them as their gifts to their bridesmaids. I truly believe that to get a stitcher hooked for life, you have to entice them with something that appeals to them from the start. Bags are big this year, and a monogram pattern works up in no time. They enjoy the project, and they're back in here asking for what they should do next."
In fact, Gantz is making plans to take Beth Gantz Designs to the next level: home parties. "Beth Gantz Designs At Home will let you choose from ready-made totes, ordering them in custom colors or even ordering patterns to stitch your own. We showcase the products in a casual atmosphere, either at the hostess' home or here in the shop. We go over the basics of needlepoint, but keep the focus on having fun," she explains, adding with a smile, "Socializing, learning a craft and shopping — we hit the trifecta of every girl's perfect evening!"
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| Dianne Vogt shows off the newly available HUGS needlepoint pattern. |
Calling all Golfers
During my visit to the shop, I met Dianne Vogt, a Stitches ETC employee who is also the director of the HUGS Foundation, a Northeast Ohio foundation that helps families with chemically dependent adolescents. It helps cover treatment expenses not traditionally covered by insurance, such as travel costs. The name itself stands for Hope, Understanding, Gratitude and Serenity, and the idea is that recipient families "pay it forward" and find their own ways — not necessarily financial — to help others in a similar situation.
On Monday, July 27, at the StoneWater Golf Course in Highland Heights, OH, HUGS will host a golf outing. The foundation is also selling canvases with the HUGS logo on it. Designed by Carol Gantz, a portion of the proceeds will directly go to HUGS' efforts. For more information on the golf event, the HUGS needlepoint pattern (which is also available at Stitches ETC), and an upcoming cookbook, please visit www.HUGS4Families.org.