Meet Virginia George | Owner/Founder of Crafts & Drafts NC

We had the good fortune of connecting with Virginia George and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Virginia, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I started my business because I was OBSESSED with the idea of a crafting bar, ever since I thought of it almost 10 years ago, when I was in my mid-20’s. I would talk about it with friends at parties, tweak the idea in my brain, and daydream about what it would feel like to walk into a business that I owned.

Years passed, and as I approached my 30th birthday, it dawned on me that I had been talking about this idea for far too long, and hadn’t done a single thing to make it a reality. After that realization, I felt myself spiral into an existential crisis. Was I capable of actually doing this now? Was I capable of doing this ever, or was I all talk? Ultimately, after a lot of financial planning with my husband, and sleepless nights, I determined that no matter what, I was going to start working on this business that year, and the rest is history.

In the wise words of Amelia Earhart, “The most difficult thing is the decision to act, and the rest is merely tenacity.”

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Crafts & Drafts NC is a walk-in crafting/DIY bar in Durham, North Carolina. We have 10-12 craft kits available for people to create, all with self-guided instructions, so everyone in your party can do something different. We also have a bottle shop for to-go beer, and a full beer & wine bar so people can enjoy an adult or non alcoholic beverage while creating their kit, or shopping for beers.

My background is in software project management, so the story of getting here is a weird one. Jim (husband) and I had one of our first dates at a paint night. We loved our outing and our paintings, but when we moved in together a year or so later, we both had the same painting to hang on the wall. That was the first lightbulb moment, when I realized how much better it would have been if we each did something different. That, mixed with the fact that I wished we had a bar on site, laid the original foundation for Crafts & Drafts. It was tweaked from there throughout years of daydreaming about it, but that’s where it started.

Starting a business has been the hardest thing I’ve ever done. There are so many things to figure out that you’ve never done before. Need a website? Figure it out or pay someone money you don’t have to build it. Need that pipe changed out? Figure it out or hire someone. How about advertising? PR? Accounting? Same thing. It’s all on you, and it never stops, until you get to a point of hiring it out.
These are standard challenges for every business owner, but our path has been especially grueling, given the Covid pandemic. We opened our doors on October 5, 2019. Five months later, we had to shut again, and it felt like I was pulled back into the nebulous state of helpless despair that I was in throughout the construction process. I’m grateful that we even had those first few months before the pandemic to become known in our community, because that’s what has saved us.

What I’ve learned throughout all of this is 1. You never know what you can do until you try. I fixed a fridge the other day. Seriously. The software project manager I was a few years ago wouldn’t recognize me now. 2. Done is better than perfect. Don’t marry the idea of the business that’s in your head, because it will take a looooong time to get to that point. I’m still tweaking things constantly to make this business what I envisioned, and that’s ok, because I know we’ll get there.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Drinking: Fullsteam Brewing, Durty Bull Brewing, Honeysuckle Tea House, the rooftop at The Durham Hotel

Activities: Go to a Durham Bulls Game, hike the Eno River Trails, go see a show at Motorco, and walk through the Museum of Life & Sciences, and shopping on 9th Street.

Eating: Parker & Otis for lunch, Cosmic Cantina for a low-key dinner, Pincho Loco for ice cream and tres leches cake, Plum and Nanasteak for fancy dinner

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
If there is only enough time to say thank you to one person, it’s my husband, Jim.

Day after day, for YEARS now, Jim has given me pep talks, helped me around the bar, and gotten me to laugh when all I want to do is cry, especially given how many things happened to us that were out of our control.
If the bar needed more money to make ends meet, he’d ask, “How much?” and never asked me “Why” or complained that it was too much. From the initial construction of the bar (2018-2019), or mere months after we opened and got slammed with Covid (2020-2022), he’s been unconditionally supportive through it all. I’ll never be able to say thank you for what he’s given me. It’s literally my dream come true, and it wouldn’t have been possible without him.

Website: www.craftsanddrafts.com

Instagram: Instagram.com/craftsanddraftsnc

Facebook: facebook.com/craftsanddraftsnc

Image Credits
Dave Shay Photography