We’re In Our New Offices!

We’re nearing the end of the first week settling in to our newly consolidated office and warehouse in Redmond, Washington.

It’s been a busy week. Fifteen pallets arrived from Honolulu this week. Can you picture it!? Additional phone lines are in and the light bulbs have been changed in the offices that have sat empty for years waiting for our arrival. It’s good to have all the staff in one location—Kona Bay Fabrics is humming!

I’ve always traveled back and forth between Honolulu and Redmond and love the cool weather of the Pacific Northwest. The staff, though, is facing a little bit of an adjustment. It’s been a rainy and cool this week and I’m seeing warm boots and coats I’ve never laid eyes on before. Kristina’s little dog, Tiffany, even got a stylin’ new sweater for her Northwest outings.

I’m excited about all the new ideas and events we’ll be able to craft now that we’re here. We’ve been celebrating the move by making over 100 different six yard bolts available to quilt shops. This translates into more variety. It’s also translates into a quick sale through so quilters should get into their local shops and strike while the iron is hot! Visit our website and take a look at the four pages of six yard bolts available.

Don’t forget to make the change in your address books:

Kona Bay Fabrics, 15036 NE 95th Street Suite A, Redmond, WA 98052

We also have a new fax number: 1-425-867-3054. The phone 1-800-531-7913 remains the same.

I’ll tell you one thing…my coffee sure tastes good while I watch it rain outside. I’d love your comments about the “must do’s “ for the Pacific Northwest. We're all looking forward to exploring more.

We're Expanding!

Come April 1, Kona Bay Fabrics will move our Honolulu offices and consolidate all our administrative and shipping operations in our Redmond, Washington location. We are excited about the fun, new opportunities this will allow us.

Hawaii has been my home since 1974. Starting Kona Bay Fabrics kept me busy growing a business and a family in a place many (myself included!) call paradise. It didn’t take me long to realize, though, that shipping our fabric from the printers in Japan to our warehouse in Honolulu and then on to our customers on the mainland was not the best business strategy. Since 1993, we have had our warehouse on the mainland. However, the bulk of our administrative operations remained in Honolulu along with my family and myself.

Now, the company is all grown up (along with my lovely daughter who attends UCLA) and we’re ready to expand. Kristina, our VP, is thrilled about the new adventure. She and her husband visited Washington last week and started setting up their new home in Kirkland. And yes, they were even excited about the snow!

I’ll maintain my home in Honolulu (the kitties at the golf course depend on my regular visits for their feedings) and make trips back and forth as I always have. But, my office will be right there at the top of the stairs in our new Redmond office. This move will more easily allow us to expand and streamline our operations. We have some fun ideas and look forward to being physically closer to our customers.

I have always loved the Pacific Northwest—the weather, the scenery, the activities and the people. I even took up kayaking last year and started my own oyster farm! As I sit here in the Redmond office today, I’m watching it snow, drinking a cup of Starbucks and smiling at the thought of a future so bright I’ll need to remember to pack my shades.