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| Plymouth Magazine, August 2007 |
The Pampered Pooch
Plymouth’s Kimberly Shubert-Theis crafts sweaters, scarves and jewelry for dogs
By Kelly Westhoff
Many pet owners consider their dog a part of the family. Plymouth resident Kimberly Shubert-Theis is no different. Her dogs—two Yorkshire terriers named Sadie and Toby—are a part of her family, but they are also her business inspiration.
“When I first got Sadie,” Shubert-Theis says, “a girlfriend bought me a dress for her. It was so cute, so small, and I thought, ‘What a great idea!’” Shubert-Theis grew up in Park Rapids, Minnesota where she was always involved in 4-H activities. Because of this experience, she was able to make a quick study of her dog’s new little dress and replicate it on her own sewing machine. “I started making fleece coats and sweaters,” she explains. “Yorkies are little, so they are always cold. Besides, she was my baby and I wanted to dress her.”
Yet Sadie soon outgrew her wardrobe. “She is supposed to be a teacup Yorkie, but she became huge,” Shubert-Theis says, explaining with a smile that Sadie now weighs in at a mutant 17 pounds. “I had all these tiny things, so a year later I got Toby,” Shubert-Theis says, noting that Toby’s genes obeyed his pedigree. At four years of age, he is a slight two pounds.
Not long after she’d gotten Toby, a frightening thing happened. “It was a cold, winter night—one of those nights when it’s just frigid, 5 degrees,” Shubert-Theis says. “The door was open because Sadie had just been outside and at the same time there was a loud noise that spooked Toby. He took off out the door and was gone. It was the worst night of my life.” A 2-pound dog doesn’t stand much of a chance outside on a 5-degree night, and 45 dread-filled minutes passed before Toby was found quaking and immobile in the middle of a road. Shubert-Theis credits his survival to the hooded, fleece pullover she’d dressed him in.
Toby recovered, as did Shubert-Theis, but that night sparked an idea. An item she’d sewn had saved her little dog’s life. Surely there were other toy breeds out there that would benefit from her fleecy creations. Friends, family and acquaintances were always complimenting the canine fashions she’d pieced together. What if she went into the business of selling doggie designs? After some initial research, Shubert-Theis gave notice at her mortgage-broker job, secured a start-up loan and registered herself as a small business owner. She christened her new business Epernéy, pronounced ep-ern-nay, which is a town at the heart of the champagne-growing region of France and the name of a quaint little wine bar in St. Thomas that she loves.
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The remainder of this article can be found in the August 2007 issue of Plymouth Magazine.
To learn more about Eperney, visit www.eperney.com.