Stitching Success: How Designs by Nhung Threads Community, Culture, and Craft Together in Yarmouth
When you step into Designs by Nhung, nestled along John Street in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, the hum of a sewing machine is often the first greeting. The smell of fabrics—cotton, chiffon, and upholstery—mingles with the sense of quiet focus that fills the space. This is more than a sewing supply shop; it’s the creative heartbeat of a woman whose journey from Vietnam to Canada has been stitched together by resilience, artistry, and community connection.
From Vietnam to Yarmouth
In her younger years in Vietnam, Nhung wanted to go to university. “I didn’t have enough money to continue studying in university," she reflects. “That’s when I thought I should learn how to sew, and learn how to design.” She operated a sewing business in her home town of Pleiku for about ten years until she had the funds to go to university.
After graduating, she worked in a project, where she met her future husband, John. She arrived in Yarmouth in 2004 and began building a life in a new land. During the first few years, that included annual trips back to Vietnam to carry out consultancies, but Nhung had run a tailoring business before and wanted to do it again, this time in Yarmouth.
From that spark, Designs by Nhung was born in 2011—strategically launched on the summer solstice, a nod perhaps to new beginnings and long days of hard work ahead. Fourteen years later, the shop is a fixture in the community, supplying fabrics, sewing materials, and offering tailoring services that range from everyday alterations to intricate wedding and prom dress fittings.
A One-Woman Powerhouse
Nhung runs the business solo and has done so since its inception. “There aren’t many people around now who like to do alterations, or even can do alterations,” she says. “So it’s hard to find people with the right skills and the right work ethic.” Yet despite the long hours—sometimes stretching 11 hours a day—her passion remains evident. “For the most part, I really just want to enjoy my day working and make sure I don’t feel bored,” she explains.
Her dedication has won her loyal customers not only in Yarmouth but from as far away as Halifax and Bridgewater. “Most customers come because they need me to repair clothes for them, and they think I’ve done a very good job, so they keep coming back,” she says. Word of mouth remains her most powerful marketing tool, and over the years, it’s helped solidify her reputation as one of the few reliable tailors in the region.
A Shop That Grows with Its Community
While tailoring services are at the core of the business, Designs by Nhung has grown in scope. The store now boasts a wide inventory of sewing supplies and fabrics, including quilting materials, upholstery fabrics, and floral prints. “I have a little bit of everything really,” she says. “I get really happy when customers come looking for something that’s hard to find, and I have it, so they don’t have to travel or shop online to get it.”
As the business flourished, space became a constraint. “I started to think ‘my shop is too small’,” Nhung recalls. That’s when she made the bold decision to buy a larger building—an ambitious move that required support.
Enter CBDC Yarmouth
It was about that time that Nhung remembered CBDC Yarmouth, who she had first approached in 2011 for startup advice. “They said ‘don’t borrow if you don’t have to’,” she recalls. “But by 2022, when we moved to the big building, we had to borrow, so we went back again.”
CBDC’s support enabled her to purchase and renovate the new space, addressing everything from roofing to LED lighting and even setting up separate electrical systems. “We really liked that we could pay back the loan faster than scheduled with no penalty,” Nhung says. “We don’t like to borrow and don’t like to owe money, so CBDC was the best choice for us.”
Her relationship with CBDC continues today. “I drop in on Kristina (Nuja) anytime there's any changes, or anything like that,” she says. The organization even helped facilitate an additional loan when a local coffee shop expressed interest in renting part of her building. Renovations were needed to create a wheelchair-accessible entrance and washroom, further contributing to Yarmouth’s inclusive community infrastructure.
Craft Meets Community
Nhung’s roots in the community run deep. “I run into lots of people on Main Street, and I know them and they know me,” she says with pride. In a town where relationships are personal and long-standing, her presence has become woven into the fabric of daily life. That visibility—along with her reputation for quality—continues to draw both loyal locals and curious newcomers through her doors.
And while she has her sights set on the future, she’s mindful of the challenges ahead. “Everybody eventually gets old,” she says with a laugh. “I would love to find somebody young to work in the business and eventually take it over, but as I said, it’s not easy to find someone with the skills, interest, and work ethic.”
She dreams of bringing in skilled relatives from Vietnam—where tailoring is a respected and common trade—but acknowledges that cultural and immigration hurdles make it difficult. Still, her outlook remains hopeful and her advice for other entrepreneurs rings true: “Anybody starting their own business needs to realize that if they look at it as a pay rate per hour, you're often not going to make much per hour. It's more than money. It's a labour of love.”
Designs by Nhung is more than a retail space—it’s a symbol of cultural bridging, dedication-to-craft, and quiet resilience. In a rapidly changing world, businesses like Nhung’s remind us of the beauty in making things by hand, serving your community, and doing what you love—even if the hours are long, and the journey starts half a world away.