Nestled in the heart of Kansas is one of the most European cities in America—Lindsborg—or as locals and visitors know it, Little Sweden, USA. It’s here that Corey Peterson and his wife, Denise, own Hemslöjd, a treasured workshop specializing in Swedish gifts and the famous Dala horse, handcrafted and personalized on-site.
“We have artists who paint the Dala horses with traditional Swedish folk art,” says Peterson. “Then we personalize those either with a name, address, or a message like välkommen … the most common one, which is ‘welcome’ in Swedish.”
Hemslöjd, which translates to “handcraft,” began in 1984 when Ken Sjögren, at the time a vice president at the local university, Bethany College, began making Dala horses out of his garage. The handcrafted treasures were originally for friends and family, but as requests grew, he enlisted his neighbor, Ken Swisher, who brought manufacturing experience to the hobby. Finding such success, they opened a gift shop in an old gas station in downtown Lindsborg.
In 2008 the Kens began recruiting Peterson, who grew up in the community alongside Sjögren’s daughter, to take over Hemslöjd so they could retire. “My wife and I had careers in Topeka,” he says. “But we’d always thought about coming back to Lindsborg because it’s a very unique little town.”
In 2011 Peterson officially took over, leaving behind his successful career in association management.
Hemslöjd is not far from two interstates, where billboards draw customers in. Peterson knows that even the smallest amount of Scandinavian heritage can pique a customer’s interest to stop in. Customers get to interact with the artists and woodworkers, eventually leaving with treasured keepsakes. Peterson continues to grow his customer base with a robust website and a catalog that he sends to customers.
“It’s a perfect marriage of brick and mortar and e-commerce,” says Peterson. “We have a lot of customers that have never been here!”
Crystal Clear Expansion
With Hemslöjd, Peterson also acquired the custom glass-etching business, Glass Decorators, founded by the original owners.
“They started etching glassware, putting Swedish designs on glasses and coffee mugs,” says Peterson of the former owners. In fact, Swisher, being the more technical person, developed his own equipment.
“He welded [the machine] together with metal plates that they cut out and just etched the glass based on the design of the metal plates that were made,” says Peterson. “I actually have a set of their glasses we received for our wedding back in 1986!”
The handmade etching machine was eventually replaced with sand carving and an IKONICS CrystalBlast Elite 3.0 and the CrystalBlast 3624 for backup. The new technology enabled the original owners to diversify the business to fulfill custom orders for etched glassware, from mugs and wineglasses to shot glasses and pitchers. Peterson grew the product line, working with JDS and Marco Awards Group.
“For customers, [Glass Decorators] has nothing to do with Scandinavian heritage,” laughs Peterson.
Finding Community
Not long after Peterson took over as owner, he began searching for a small business trade association to join. Having had a career in association management, he knew the value of a trade community. Shocked there wasn’t one that met his needs, he discovered the Awards and Personalization Association.
“I started looking, and the APA was the closest [group] that would make sense for me to participate in,” he says. “It didn’t hurt that they had their annual convention in Vegas, so yep, that was a draw too!”
Peterson has found value in meeting other members to discuss equipment and products and share support that often only other small business owners can relate to. “Meeting peers that would go through the same things that I may be facing and getting to have those conversations … has been very helpful for me over the years.”
Today, Peterson is leaning on APA for another reason: his own retirement.
“The biggest challenge I have [is] I’m kind of up there in years. I’m to the point where I’m trying to figure out succession planning,” he says. On which he hopes to glean some insight from APA members.
Celebrating Heritage
Since taking over, Peterson has enjoyed learning more about his own Swedish heritage, a satisfying outcome of owning the business he hadn’t anticipated. “I knew the basics. I knew some Swedish food that we would eat at Christmas, and I know my grandmothers and aunts would all speak Swedish when they didn’t want us to understand what they were saying,” he says, but that was it.
He integrated himself in the business and culture, while also becoming an active community member in Lindsborg and supporting the local college. From his vantage point, if the town and institution are successful, Hemslöjd will be successful.
“I’m proud of our business,” he says. “When we bought it, my first goal was just not to mess it up. And the fact that 15 years later we’re still in business and going strong, that’s about the best I could ask for.”