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North American Alpaca News
Schacht Spindle Co.
Celebrates 40 Years of Passion
BOULDER
,
COLORADO
– This year
marks Schacht Spindle Co., Inc.’s
40th year of making quality tools for
spinners and weavers. What started
by chance soon became not just a
livelihood, but a deep and passionate
involvement in the crafts of hand-
spinning and hand-weaving.
“What has made coming to work
shear pleasure all of these years,” notes
President Barry Schacht, “is being
involved in a field for which I have
great passion. This deep interest is what
shapes and directs everything we do
here at Schacht, from product design,
to customer service, to our relation-
ships with our dealers, employees,
and vendors.”
“We really try to live by our mission
statement, which is to ‘spend each and
every day in support of hand-weaving
and hand-spinning. Our goal is to
make products that are unique, well-
crafted, a pleasure to use, and work
well for their intended purpose. In
addition, we are committed to quality
and creativity in our products, manu-
facturing processes, and customer
service.’ I firmly believe that these
guiding principles have
helped us to grow and succeed –
as well as made every day something
I look forward to.”
As part of their on-going celebration,
Schacht launched a new website in
March 2009, sponsored a contest,
introduced special limited-edition
products, and will held a special
celebratory event on October 8th.
Schacht Spindle Co. was founded
in 1969 during the back-to-earth
movement and its accompanying craft
resurgence by brothers Barry and
Dan Schacht. The brothers began the
business by chance when a friend
wanted to learn to spin. They’d heard
about Greentree Ranch in Loveland,
Colorado, where they raised sheep and
taught spinning. One day the brothers,
along with assorted friends and dogs,
hopped in their van and drove up to
the ranch. Not only did they get a
quick lesson in the art of the drop
spindle, but they also came home with
a commission to make 200 spindles.
When they delivered the spindles to
the Greens, they were delighted, espe-
cially with the little green tree they had
hand-painted on each one. Louise
Green, who was just starting to weave,
suggested they make a simple loom.
“What’s a loom?” they asked. The first
model was a portable tapestry loom, a
version of which Schacht still makes
today. To spread the word about weav-
ing, they taught classes at the Boulder
Free School, and soon opened a retail
shop to serve their students.
In the beginning, they designed sim-
ple looms and accessories at one of the
university’s woodworking shops. Early
manufacturing was handled with the
help of a commune and a retired wood-
worker in Loveland. Later, the brothers
set up a shop in their garage, and from
there they moved to a series of “real”
factory spaces with honest-to-goodness
power equipment. In 1985, they built
their own 35,000 square foot factory
in Boulder.
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Alpacas
Magazine
Top, Barry Schacht speaks at the 40th anniver-
sary celebration, wearing a wig that harks back
to the company’s beginnings in the late 60s.
Above, a giant drop spindle was part of the
anniversary celebration.
Photos courtesy of Schacht Spindle Co.