Stephanie Hove has been a Moda Sales Rep for almost 16 years. Originally, the territory was her mom’s – “her dream job” Stephanie says. “I could never understand why my Mom loved what she did.  I have always loved fabric and sewing…but a job where you drive tens of thousands of miles a year…by yourself, with no lunch break (gasp!), made zero sense to me. Unfortunately, she was also battling Ovarian Cancer.  While she managed well for years, the time came when she needed to step back and asked if I would work with her.  I shocked myself, and my entire family when I said yes!”

Back then, Stephanie was a twenty-something living her best life in Chicago. A single girl, bartending downtown and in Wrigleyville (Go Cubs!), zipping around the city on her scooter. When she hit the road for Moda, she LOVED IT IMMEDIATELY!  She loved the small towns, the cute shops, the quilt shop owners, the daily dose of creativity…everything!   Stephanie says, “A glass of wine at the end of the night in a small-town restaurant while reading my book alone was such a change. Even I couldn’t deny the appeal of this lifestyle. I even loved the solitude of driving all day listening to my books.  What a change! Who knew I was meant to be a fabric selling, road warrior?  I loved the extra time her and I got together because of Moda.  Memories of late nights in the hospital planning my route and looking over the new fabric collections are so special to me.  When she passed away in 2008, I was hired to take over the entire territory on my own.  Life, for many reasons, has never been the same since.”

Shortly after taking the job, Stephanie started dating her future husband.  Bartending was all but a distant (and blurry) memory.  She traded her downtown condo for a bungalow on the outskirts of the city. She switched from being a night owl for being one of those happy morning people.  Her spare bedroom became a sewing room, and the fabric addiction gene she inherited was awakened in full force.  

While it’s her dream job, when she started her family, there were just too many road miles and nights away from home, so she spilt the territory with her sister, Jenny.  A family affair!  

Nowadays, she has 2 boys, 6 and 3, plus a dog, Clark W. Recently her family made the big (very hard) decision to leave Chicago and head north to live on 10 acres in the wild west of Wisconsin.  After 17+ years in Chicago, she claims to still be “very much a city girl”, but she’s transitioning (slowly) to the slower pace of country life.  

Stephanie explains, “My love for quilt shops and their owners has only grown over the years. Many current shop owners originally worked with my mom.  Those women, and all the others since, have taught me so much and helped me grow over the years.  (THANK YOU!) I was always welcomed into this industry with open arms and am so grateful I landed in such a soft place.” 

“After almost 16 years, I am one of the lucky few who loves their job.  I still love the solitude of driving thousands of miles. I love rolling my huge Tutto bag into quilt shops all day and laying out all the beautiful new fabric choices.  My favorite thing has always been seeing how each shop owner chooses bolts and plans something completely different from all the others.  It is always such a surprise.  Kind of like my life…such a wonderful surprise!”