We were lucky to catch up with Christine Walker recently and have shared our conversation below.

Christine, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with what makes profitability in your industry a challenge – what would you say is the biggest challenge?

I consider my business to be a part of the Fiber industry. Within this industry and within any industry that involves anything created by hand, everything is costly. With regards to the retreats that I host, we are in a particularly bad time for travel. Costs have gone up for literally everything. I have tried to keep my fees relatively stable as the cost of doing business has gotten higher. My goal is to keep prices lower to keep the trips more accessible. I try whenever possible to support local businesses and artisans when planning trips.

With regards to the industry as a whole, “making” is a labor of love. Making anything from scratch is time consuming. For example, people often say “You should sell that!” – of course I should however, who will pay what the item is actually worth when you factor in time and materials. This makes profitability a challenge.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I learned to knit from my grandmother in my 30s. After several years of stops and starts, I started attending retreats and really fell in love with knitting and fiber arts. I wanted to be a part of the fiber industry and community but struggled to find my place. I wasn’t fast enough to churn things out to sell, I wasn’t a designer and I wasn’t going to dye yarn. My entire career to that point had been customer facing so when the retreat business became available for purchase, I knew I had found the way! I had built skills over time that lent themselves to caring for people in a business setting and creating experiences that are fun and inclusive.

I purchased this established small retreat business in November 2019, just 3 months before the Covid Pandemic. The pandemic obviously rendered all travel based businesses unable to operate. I quickly had to figure out how to pivot. I began offering virtual retreats with knitting designers/instructors to keep the business/brand going. I am most proud of keeping the business afloat during this difficult time. The hardest part was from a financial standpoint as I was not eligible for any assistance due to the timing. I persevered and I did it.

The name PeaceTree Fiber Adventures represents my thinking that everything grows from a place of Peace, which is something that I have nowhere near mastered, but something I strive for. I hope to branch out into other types of fiber related retreats in the future.

The main reason I think my retreats are different is my attention to detail and people. I strive to make the event special for everyone and making everyone feel a part of the community we have built. I have a high number of repeat attendees – I must be doing something right! Knitting retreats, as I host them, are about community, learning about each other and our craft and laughter. They are my favorite times of the year!

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

As I mentioned, the Covid Pandemic nearly put me out of business before I even really started. What was very tough was that, since I bought an existing business, events were already scheduled. When everything started shutting down unexpectedly, venues cancelled, people cancelled etc etc, some people chose that moment to be downright mean. With everything that was going on, it was extremely difficult and damaging to deal with. However, I persevered and I stuck with it. I made no money those first couple of years and had to meet my financial obligations with my own money. It was a huge leap of faith. I understand it was a privilege to be able to stay afloat with my own resources, however, it was incredibly hard to do. I was not letting that virus destroy my dreams.

Can you talk to us about your experience with buying businesses?

I bought a small business. I had no idea what I was in for but all in all, it was ok. There is lots of legal of course, and that can get difficult when the buying and selling attorneys are delivering different information. Anything transactional like this is not without headaches. I learned so much from that experience. When I am ready to sell, I feel I will be much more prepared and able to be helpful to the buyer.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.peacetreefiberadventures.com
• Instagram: @peacetreefiberadventures
• Facebook: Knitting & Yoga Adventures by PeaceTree, PeaceTree Adventurers

Image Credits

Gale Zucker (not all photos though)