Lake Country This Month

April, 2016

Lake Country This Month

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By Eric Oliver Enterprise Staff OCONOMOWOC — Entrepreneur Keith Stew- art and his wife, Laurie, are fading and ripped upholsteries' worst ene- mies. The Stewarts recently became the new owners of Oconomowoc's Fibrenew, an upholstery repair and restoration service. Fibre- new repairs, re-dyes, restores and cleans leather, plastic, vinyl and fabric. Basically, if there's faded or ripped fabric, Keith Stewart will do everything he can to bring it back to life. Stewart works with fur- niture, cars, boats and even planes. There was even a time he had to reupholster 61 chairs for a Cousins Subs that was reopening. He had a little bit of help from Laurie Stewart and his father-in-law on that one. Keith Stewart became an entrepreneur after spend- ing his entire post-college life in the metal industry, where he commercially heat-treated metal. He enjoyed his time doing it, but after several years of doing it he realized there isn't a lot of change or innovation in the field. "We used to joke that heat treating is the second oldest profession," Stewart said. "It goes back to the middle ages if not earlier. There isn't anything going on and frankly, it was just boring. It was more inter- esting to try and do some- thing new." So he tried something new. With the help of a franchise coach, Stewart spent a year researching businesses he wanted to be a part of. The business coach found Fibrenew and presented it to Stewart. Along with Laurie, Keith Stewart spent time talking to the local development person in Hartford about the company. He spent a day shadowing a fran- chisee in Chicago and when he decided the busi- ness was right for him, he approached the former owner, who was looking to retire. Now the Stewarts are the proud owners of Fibrenew. Keith Stewart handles all the calls and all the repairs. He spends his days driving around Waukesha and Washington counties and handles warranty work with companies, which takes him all around the state. Laurie Stewart is a full-time respiratory therapist and is also in charge of the marketing and promotion of Fibre- new. With her free time she even helps out with pro- jects, like the one for Cousins Subs, if Keith Stewart needs a little extra help. The unique thing about Fibrenew and the first step in any repair starts with Keith Stewart coming to see the problem. A majori- ty of all the items he treats can be repaired, and if he needs it he can replace most fabrics; leather some- times can be complicated. Stewart said Fibrenew has developed its own repair methods and instead of just coming with a book of color codes and hoping for the best, Fibrenew developed a method to match the cur- rent furniture color to bring it back to life. "We don't use color codes because color changes over time," Stewart said. "We focus in on what color you have now and we match that." Through the use of dyes and proprietary formulas, Stewart said there isn't a color he can't match. If he can't figure out, he also has an entire nationwide net- work of Fibrenew owners to consult. Although he is still just getting used to owning his new business, the entire experience of his venture into entrepreneurship has been rewarding, he said. Stewart said it's perfect for where he and Laurie Stewart are in their lives. He said his situation is similar to many of the Fibrenew owners. "I was just looking to do something different and not willing to work for any- body else anymore," Stew- art said. "I wanted to call my own shots." Stewart works five days a week and does a majority of his work by appoint- ment. He is willing to trav- el to fix a product, and can even repair furniture on site. To request a quote on a repair or to learn more about Fibrenew, call Stew- art at 262-993-2322 or visit www.fibrenew.com/sew. Email: eoliver@conleynet.com Page 2A • FREEMAN & ENTERPRISE LAKE COUNTRY APRIL 2016 Circulation Dept. To reach the Circulation Department call 542-2501 or go to www.gmtoday.com/wfhelp. MANAGEMENT Bill Yorth - Publisher & Editor-in-Chief..513-2671 byorth@conleynet.com Katherine Michalets - Managing Editor..513-2644 kmichalets@conleynet.com Jim Baumgart - Freeman Group Ad Director 513-2621 jbaumgart@conleynet.com Tim Haffemann - Circulation Director....513-2640 thaffemann@conleynet.com Patricia Scheel - Prepress Manager.....513-2690 pscheel@conleynet.com NEWS DEPARTMENT Local News - Katherine Michalets.........513-2657 kmichalets@conleynet.com Sports - Pat Neumuth............................513-2667 pneumuth@conleynet.com Death Notices - Shana Duffy................513-2618 obits@conleynet.com Newsroom Fax.............................(262) 542-8259 CLASSIFIEDS: 542-2211 Hours: M -F 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. PHOTO REPRINTS Color reprints are $25 each. Call 542-2501 PAGE REPRINTS Go to www.gmtoday.com/freemanreprints 262-542-2500 Hours: M-F 8 a.m.- 5 p.m. 801 N. Barstow St., P.O. Box 7, Waukesha, WI 53187 The FREEMAN How to reach us Lake Country T H I S M O N T H If you have a news tip from the Lake Country area, contact Katherine Michalets at 513-2644 or kmichalets@conleynet.com To advertise in "Lake Country This Month," call the advertising department at (262) 513-2624. To subscribe to the daily Freeman or weekly Enterprise, call 542-2500 Freeman subscription rates • By in-county mail 13 weeks...........$36 26 weeks...........$66 52 weeks.........$120 • Out-of-county mail 13 weeks...........$51 26 weeks............$99 52 weeks..........$192 Easy buy .....$10 a month with credit card Electronic edition ......$10 a month with credit card & ENTERPRISE Enterprise subscription rates • Oconomowoc ZIP code 6 months.....$21.00 1 year..........$35.00 2 years........$68.00 • Ashippun, Ixonia, Neosho, Rubicon, Okauchee, Watertown and Sullivan ZIP codes and other Waukesha County addresses 6 months.....$25.00 1 year..........$43.00 2 years........$84.00 • All other addresses 6 months.....$29.00 1 year..........$51.00 2 years........$99.00 18 Full-size Doors On Display, Our Installers Are Licensed & Bonded 16'x7', 25 Gauge...Non Insulated Steel $ 725 Lifetime Door Co. TRUCKLOAD SALE on Garage Doors & Door Openers Installed Tax Included $ 895 • Lifetime Warranty • Other Sizes Available • 2000 Garage Doors in Stock Special! - Take down and haul away old door for FREE! 16x7 SAVE $ 240 NOW Model 8365 ORDER A LIFTMASTER 1/2 HP GARAGE DOOR OPENER & GET 2 REMOTES & KEYPAD. $ 329 Installed Tax Included • Two-Sided Pre-Finished Galvanized Steel • R-10 Insulated • 5 colors to choose from 12645 W. Townsend (2 blocks N. of Burleigh, enter off 124th St. only) Free Estimate 262-783-4004 Monday - Friday 7am-5pm www.lifetimedoor.net 2 4 9 1 5 8 0 0 3 Full Year Warranty, parts and service on installed operators. FREE Internet Gateway with order 607 Main St., Delafield 262-646-8917 • lieblangleather.com Your Furs Can Chill Out This Summer 249049011 Storage for your furs in a climate controlled vault. CLEAN IT. STORE IT. PROTECT IT. RESTYLE IT. Making old into new Oconomowoc's Fibrenew handles leather, plastic and vinyl restoration and repair Submitted photo Keith Stewart of Oconomowoc's Fibrenew works to restore the interior of a Mercedes-Benz. Submitted photo A leather chair that was ruined by a dog. Submitted photo The same chair after restoration. Kenny Yoo/Special to The Freeman Hannah Malcolm of Wales, 5, is all smiles and hunger as she gets set to eat another peanut butter and jelly sandwich during Delafield Library's PB&J celebration Wednesday. The chil- dren listened to stories about peanut butter and jelly and made sandwiches as well. Kenny Yoo/Special to The Freeman Miles Robert, 22 months old, uses his hand to make sure he devours every bit of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich during lunchtime at the Delafield Public Library on Wednesday as it observed National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day. Kenny Yoo/Special to The Freeman Jane Purton, head of youth services at the Delafield Public Library, reads stories about peanut butter and jelly to children before they feast on PB&J sandwiches Wednesday morning. Saturday is National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day. The joy of peanut butter and jelly Submitted photo A boat chair repaired by Keith Stewart of Oconomowoc's Fibrenew. Submitted photo The repaired boat chair.

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