For 50 years, Prince George Sewing Centre has been an institution in town.
Ken Johnson and his wife Norma opened up their speciality sewing shop in Prince George after Ken was transferred from Vancouver with the Singer Company. When Singer opted to close their Prince George location, the Johnsons decided it was the perfect opportunity to stay and open their own store.
“We are pretty much the only full service sewing shop in the north,” Ken says. “We handle notions, fabric, sewing machines. Anything you need to sew with, we pretty much have.”
A big part of PG Sewing’s business is machine service. They are an exclusive Janome sewing machine dealer and handle parts and service for most machines.
Ken attributes his store’s longevity with the expertise they offer along with their renown customer service.
“We have a team of experts here. If you come into our store with questions about quilting, or how to do anything, we can help you. Our staff are very good at what they do. You can come in with a sewing machine problem and that’s where I come in,” Ken says. “We have probably the best customer relationship in the sewing industry. People come in because we take the time to talk to everybody.”
Ken is proud of the store’s endurance and has no plans on retiring any time soon.
“We service the jails, the pulp mill, the refinery. People depend on us,” Ken says. “I’ll retire when they put me underground. I’m not ready to retire. I don’t know what I would do. Sitting at home watching TV is not my bag. I like to be doing something. We’ve been here 50 years and we’re still going. Hopefully I'm here for another 50.”
As a thank you to customers for their ongoing loyalty, PG Sewing will be hosting its annual customer appreciation event on March 14, 2020. Everything in store will be on sale, including sewing machines which will be an additional 10% off the already reduced price.
“People have been very loyal to us and we just feel it’s important to acknowledge them,” Ken says. “Once a year, we want to show our gratitude and give back.”
For more information about PG Sewing, visit the website at www.pgsewing.com or call 250-563-1533.
