Mount Isa's fabric shop will close its doors indefinitely on September 1, after 20 years of business.
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John Bishop bought Isa Creative Fabrics for his wife Margaret as a Christmas present in the year 2000, but have recently made the decision to close.
"The quilting lady was going to leave town with all the quilting fabric, so when my husband asked me what I wanted for Christmas I said the quilting shop and it has grown from there," Margaret Bishop said.
"It has been an amazing journey, meeting the people of Mount Isa and I have friended a lot of them through craft.
"Business has been good and I have loved the people who were creating and coming in to get their items."
Isa Creative Fabrics was located on Marian Street, but due to refurbishments on site the business had to temporarily close.
Ms Bishop said she had full intentions of reopening the business, but family matters had become more prominent, so she opened a temporary shop on Simpson Street to sell remaining stock.
"The business is still for sale, but I have managed to sell most of the stock," she said.
"And if the business doesn't sell I'll take it with me."
Ms Bishop said while owning the business, she had experienced many personal highs and low.
"I lost my son in the middle of it, which really hit me for six, but we picked up and kept going," she said.
"I have had my daughter working with me for the last 10 years, which has been really lovely, as well as some beautiful staff over the years.
"I have also travelled a lot attending product releases and training with Janome, I've been to Thailand, America twice and some of the top resorts in Australia.
The Bishops will travel between Mount Isa and the coast, coming back to visit family and service sewing machines.
"Being a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, a wife, a business owner and very involved in our church it was time to have a bit more time for ourselves," Ms Bishop said.
"Thank you to everyone over the years for the support, we have appreciated it."
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Samantha Campbell
Samantha Campbell (nee Walton) has worked for regional and rural publications across New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory. She is currently writing for the North Queensland Register based in North West Queensland. Email: samantha.campbell@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Samantha Campbell (nee Walton) has worked for regional and rural publications across New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory. She is currently writing for the North Queensland Register based in North West Queensland. Email: samantha.campbell@austcommunitymedia.com.au
