About The Knitting Hut and Sue Stratford

About the Hut

I love walking into my shop every day and seeing all the beautiful colours and textures of all the yarns. This time last year I had no idea that I would be starting my own business and turning my hobby into my job!

The idea started in October 2005 after visiting local yarn shops and not being able to find what I was looking for or experiencing poor customer service. This combined with a visit to Harrogate to The Knitting & Stitching Show with my friend Andrea put the idea in my head and by mid-November I had found a shop and agreed the rent.

Christmas was spent gutting the shop and re-decorating and by February we were ready to open. Finding a range of yarns that other shops do not stock was a challenge but thanks to the internet we are able to offer customers a great range of yarns and accessories which are not easy to find in this country. I was taught to knit by my Mum as a child and then caught the knitting bug when I was a teenager. Before I had my four children I worked in Customer Service and at the shop I try to bring all my skills together to make sure that everyone gets the help and encouragement they need to complete their project.

The reaction I get to the shop and now the website is great, I have met some lovely people and made a lot of new friends. We have a monthly newsletter to keep everyone in touch with what we’re up to and also Click & Clack sessions so we can all meet up with our knitting and have a good chat.

My shop and the website would not have been possible without the help and support of my family (especially my husband!) and my friends, whether it was putting together shelving, showing me how to wallpaper or looking after one or more of the children for a few hours here and there, everyone has pitched in and made my dream possible.

The children have a wish list of what they want when I have sold enough balls of wool which range from a bowling ball to a holiday in St Lucia so I have certainly got my work cut out for me over the next few years but how many people get the chance to turn something they love into their job?

Subscribe online for our free monthly newsletter - go to the "Whats New?" page ... Feel free to sign and leave comments on our guest book, we love to hear from you! ... Online shop now open! ...