Today we’d like to introduce you to Tony Martinez.
Hi Tony, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
I wish I could say that I’ve always wanted to be in the fashion or apparel decorating industry but that couldn’t be further from the truth. The closest to it may be the drafting classes I took in High School but really aren’t the same. The truth is that the opportunity to start our embroidery business found us after a couple of back-to-back tragic events including the loss of two brothers and mentors from an organization I was a member of.
We were looking for some memorial patches and were having a hard time finding a reasonably priced option for what we were looking for. In the process of researching I came across someone selling a small tabletop embroidery machine for a decent price and decided “Hey, I’ll just make the patches myself”.
The lady I bought the machine from was nice enough to teach me how to use it and that started what would eventually become our humble embroidery and custom apparel business.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
After purchasing our little tabletop, single needle machine, we had a lot of friends and family members asking if we could embroider various items for them. Word got around and we soon found ourselves getting pretty busy. Realizing that the little tabletop machine wasn’t going to cut it anymore, we started a search for a commercial machine.
We found that machine in Virginia and after talking my brother into taking a road trip with me, we picked it up and haven’t looked back since. We now have a ZSK Sprint 6; a workhorse that is capable of embroidering just about anything we throw at it with ease.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
My advice for someone looking to start an embroidery/custom apparel business would be to take the time to do the research, including consulting with an established shop owner. Sure, ask about what worked but just as important, ask about the things that didn’t. I’ve helped a few local companies get off and running and it’s something I’ve always been proud of.
Something we are very well known for is our attention to detail. Sure! we’ve made mistakes and we have found ourselves pulling hundreds (even thousands) of stitches out to redo an item and repurchasing an item and doing it again is not uncommon in our shop either. Multiple rulers, a compass, and even a framing square are common tools for us.
But in the end, our clients know that when they pick up their order it’s going to look great. I honestly believe this is why we have so many amazing returning customers.
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