Big Move

Today is a big day for Fiori del Campo – we have started the move into our new workshop production space at the Brazee Street Studios in Oakley! The studio is a completely green building, being LEED Certified and solar powered. The space is exactly what I was looking for when considering expanding the scope of our business as we work towards expanding the success of the North American Alpaca fiber industry. I wanted a green building, preferably in Oakley (near my home), in the upscale Oakley retail district, with foot traffic, easy access to the public for classes and participation in monthly Oakley After Hours. On December 23 discovered that the old abandoned T-Shirt Factory on Brazee Street had seemingly overnight transformed into a glowing, thriving new artist’s space. To make a long story short, I called them right away and found out they had only *one* workshop space remaining in the building. And lo and behold, it met *all* of the requirements I was looking for – it is LEED certified and solar powered, is right across the street from my house, is in the Oakely retail district with foot traffic. Our workshop is located on the first floor directly on Brazee Street with its own private entrance for my customers and staff and is the perfect spot to participate in Oakley After Hours!

In the early phases the workshop will be offering fiber arts classes to the community both at the workshop and at external sites, and will eventually be employing designers and artisans from UC’s DAAP as we design and produce luxury Suri alpaca garments and accessories. The workshop will also house our new fiber sorting and grading operation. I continue to write my business plan, which includes very ambitious 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 10 year goals which will involve incredible growth. I will be continuing to look for assistance with marketing, production, financing, and all the other aspect involved in growing a new business. I am very optimistic and have very high hopes for Fiori del Campo as well as the North American alpaca Commercial fiber processing industry. We hope that you will continue with your support and encouragement, and make sure that you do check the website for upcoming classes, events and announcements!