We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mary White a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Mary, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

If I could go back in time, I would have started my business much sooner; I would’ve started my business when I went to college.

I started Legacy Loop Crochet in 2020, like many people, I adopted a cat during the pandemic. I found out she needed to have surgery on her teeth, and without pet insurance, I was left with the bill. So after crocheting for over a decade, I began selling my items to friends and family. It wasn’t long until I had a business name, logo and plan to dive into makers markets in the Kansas City area.

I was working for a nonprofit organization that sold second-hand arts and craft supplies where I could purchase mountains of yarn at a discount. This helped me make the jump into increasing my production and starting selling consignment. If I would have started my business sooner, I feel confident that I would have a website and large online following coming into 2024. I love attending in-perons events, however, I still have a long way to go to connect with my customers virtually.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Mary White, a simple name for a creative person. Growing up, I was always creating: Barbie clothes from fabric scraps, greeting cards with Blo Pens, even collages from candy wrappers. It wasn’t until middle school that I wanted to learn how to crochet. With a DK book and my great-grandmother’s crochet hooks, my grandmother taught me the basic stitches of crochet. After a short break from the hobby due to slanted edges…I picked up the yarn once again, and never put it down. That was 14 years ago.

I spent my early crochet years making small projects for family, coasters and laptop sleeves, that sort of thing, before completing my first beast, a purple, white and black blanket for my college dorm room. During my short 3.5 years in school, I kept my yarn with me wherever I went, moving bins from dorm to home to apartment, I couldn’t let it go.

Once I moved to Kansas City, I worked long hours serving as an AmeriCorps member in the city. For nearly 2 years, crocheting took a back seat. But it wasn’t long until the COVID-19 pandemic hit and I adopted the most precious, fluffy cat I have ever had (she’s also my only cat, but who’s keeping track). When my cat, Layla, needed to have surgery on her teeth, I needed an income boost, and along came Legacy Loop Crochet.

Legacy Loop Crochet is named in honor of my great-grandmother’s legacy that lives on through me and all the lives touched with my cat-hair ridden products, especially my signature Cat Hats! I am proud to keep her memory alive with special projects for family members like Christmas stockings made from her yarn, or Christmas tree skirts stitched from her original pattern. And I am proud to keep the art of crochet relevant for all stitchers out there!

In additional to legacy and family, a large part of my business is sustainability. I am happy to offer a line of products that can replace single-use items, or solve a problem within the home, all while using yarn sourced second-hand! That’s right, I source 90% of my yarn (and other business materials!) second-hand. Although it may take additional time, effort and attention, I believe the reward of saving something from a sad landfilled life, outweighs the potential challenges like not having the yarn color that a customer desires. It also a lot more fun to see what can be created from what I have on hand!

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I believe my innate caring for others has allowed me to build a positive reputation for myself and my business. After I began attending art markets, I volunteered to help other artists set up their booths and answer any of their questions. A short time later, I was managing a weekly art market of 36 vendors! This was. a huge step for my business, because I was no longer just selling my crocheted goods, but also building my brand through the connections I made with each vendor I interacted with.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

The best source for new clients is definitely my local art markets! I always have the best time meeting prospective customers as well as fellow fiber artists. You never know when you might make a lasting connection that will help your business 1, 2, even 10 years from now.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: www.instagram.com/legacyloopcrochet
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/legacyloopcrochet