A selection of hand-dyed yarn, including Tara Sager’s specialty “The Good Red,” await shoppers and stitchers on Tuesday, July 20, 2021, at Rebel Woolworks, La Grande. The shop, which sells hand-dyed yarn and now includes a mercantile for artisan products, started as an online business before setting up at 1113 Adams Ave. in downtown. 

LA GRANDE — What once started as a hobby and online store has elevated one local business owner’s career into a full-on storefront in downtown La Grande.

Rebel Woolworks, a favored spot for locally dyed yarn, is thriving at 1113 Adams Ave. as it approaches its one-year anniversary. Owner Tara Sager has utilized the central location to expand the store’s services and contribute to La Grande’s downtown environment.

“It’s been a whirlwind, but I’m really looking forward to next year,” Sager said. “It’s moved from what was a hobby turning into a business, into a business that is continuing to grow and expand.”

The store’s one-year anniversary falls on Local Yarn Store Day, a day celebrated on Saturday, April 30, to highlight unique local yarn stores.

Sager was able to open the storefront through the city’s best business plan competition in 2021, expediting the process of switching from an online format to in-person storefront.

“It happened pretty fast and then it was just about hitting the ground running,” she said.

Sager started selling dyed yarn online in 2010, knitting hats and gloves during the cold weather in Alaska. The Rebel Woolworks owner moved to La Grande in May of 2020 and was intrigued with the town’s downtown area. Less than two years later, Sager’s business has become a staple to the business landscape.

While the trade secrets of selling online versus in a storefront can be quite different, Sager noted that catching the attention of passersby in La Grande resembles catching the eye of an online shopper on an e-commerce website — first impressions are essential. Settling into a physical location brought about new challenges and possibilities, but Sager said she felt fully settled by around this February.

One year into business, Rebel Woolworks has elevated its available services as well as the overall setup of the store. The business now includes a mercantile on the left side of the space, offering teas, coffees, gourmet desserts and other goods from local stores around the Pacific Northwest. Sager stated that the mercantile serves as a good resource for customers on their way to go camping or just passing by on a day trip through the area.

Sager reflected on her growth as a store owner after a year, noting that she is continuing to improve the overall services and quality of the business. Located in a prime downtown area in La Grande, Rebel Woolworks emphasizes local connections and return customers. A large quantity of the store’s business is return customers, whom Sager often does customized yarn dyes for.

“I think what sets me apart from a regular yarn store is that people can come in and get custom items,” Sager said. “I really like that aspect of it.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has had negative effects to businesses across the region and the entire country, but Rebel Woolworks has made the best of its situation. Being conceived during the pandemic, the then-online store utilized e-commerce sales when individuals were looking for a hobby or new trade to pick up while quarantined inside their homes in 2020. Online sales of yarn saw massive gains, with Sager shipping off her product all across the country and beyond its borders.

“COVID impacted so many businesses detrimentally, but I was kind of a COVID born business, because I started this in January of 2020,” she said. “I could not keep the yarn in stock. I couldn’t dye yarn fast enough.”

Sager and Rebel Woolworks have optimized the space for private events, which the store holds roughly two to three times per month. Sager provides necessary equipment like sewing machines, as well as wine, charcuterie boards, tea or any other requested snacks for groups to gather in the space.

Serving as the chair of the promotions committee within the La Grande Main Street Downtown Association, Sager is aiming for her shop to assist the city in cultivating a thriving downtown. Rebel Woolworks benefits from foot traffic on Adams Avenue from locals and passersby alike, which is an objective within the La Grande Economic Development Department’s strategy plan for 2022-24. The business also emphasizes local connections with surrounding stores to improve the overall local economy and organize events to draw in foot traffic.

“The storefront has grown more than I expected it to, which is really awesome,” Sager said. “It’s been with the help of La Grande Main Street Downtown Association and Taylor Scroggins and having Timothy Bishop come in as the new economic development director and moving things forward.”