The year 2023 has already started quickly and at the end of last year many new followers came to social media and even now there are many first-timers visiting the online store.
I thought it would be nice to have a small introduction about the woman behind the company.
Reetta Pitkänen is the owner of Ompelimo Mirage. I am a mother of three children, 2 girls and 1 boy. My husband and I have been together for almost 20 years.
I graduated as a dressmaker in 2010 and after that I did sewing work for friends, acquaintances and namesakes, everything from competitive dance costumes and wedding dresses to small repair sewing.
On the side, I've also been doing welding work in the family business, and after graduation, entrepreneurship didn't appeal to me, so I continued in the metal industry. I trained as both a sheet metal welder and a welding coordinator and have been working full-time in the metal industry since 2010 (except for a couple of maternity leaves).
However, everything changed in 2019 as a skier when I skied the sledding hill. An icy hill and a pothole that I tried to avoid and the end result was an airborne flight and 2 broken vertebrae in my spine. In addition, the old disc bulges of course took a hit and a few new disc bulges then came with the fractures. I was so lucky during the trip that my legs still worked, but I was completely unable to work until October to November. Then I slowly returned to doing metal work for a couple of hours a day, but even after all the rehabilitation, I still couldn't do much physical work.
However, the sick leave had already been taken and the loan had to be paid, so I started doing more sewing work, I could do this from home, so I could rest whenever needed and the work was not so physical. I decided that now is the time to start my own company. February 4, 2020 is the foundation date recorded in the company register.
However, when the corona struck in the spring, the performers and athletes did not need performance costumes, so they had to adapt again. I started making face masks. A few thousand of these were sewn both in Finland and in America and Europe during 2020.
While doing it, you noticed that I really can sell ready-made products too! What an insight! I had always thought, in traditional Finnish style, that no one could want to buy my products.
By selling the masks, I got both the inspiration and faith to realize a long-time dream of making children's clothes, and the initial capital I needed for accessories.
During 2021, I started with accessories and then expanded to children's clothes. We will continue on this path.
Luckily, all that aside, I've recovered and do metal work 4 days a week and then sewing the rest of the time.
The year 2022 could accommodate a lot of new things and the online store underwent a major renovation in the summer, as well as the workspace when I moved from sewing in the alcove of the living room to a rented study.
Fall 2022 was really busy and I hope I can continue growing and designing and sewing this year as well.
Finally, a HUGE thank you to everyone who has been a part of the company's journey! Customers, partners and of course family and friends, without you there would be no Ompelimo Mirage.
Let's look forward to the new year and see you at the events, and don't forget to keep asking about custom orders and repair sewing!
