Q2030’s Business Spotlight features local business owners from our multi-cultural business directory. We’re committed to telling their stories as we work to showcase and amplify those doing the hard work of building a better community for all.
In the embroidery business, the best sound in the world is the hum of all ten machines running at the same time. Tanika Zentic looks forward to it every morning when she wakes up.
“I love it when all of them are going,” she said. “I can look around and just smile.”
Her business Stitch, Please Custom Embroidery started with just one machine, bought almost on a whim. In 2018, Zentic was running a daycare and often got embroidered gifts from her care families. She made the decision to change careers overnight.
“I woke up one day and thought, this is what I’m going to do,” she explained. Zentic says she’s known for being impulsive, yet decisive. And this was one of those moments. She invested in an embroidery machine and started learning how to use it by watching YouTube videos.
“People are always wondering what I’m up to,” she said. “I just tell them to wait and see, because its going to be good.”
Zentic grew up in Rock Island, graduated from United Township High School and thought her dream job was in banking. After 15 years and four kids, she made her first quick decision to change jobs and open the daycare. She never expected her career path would change again – to an embroidery workshop in Moline.
“I like doing things I’ve never done. I like to learn something new or something no one else is doing,” she said about the various projects she’s worked on. “When someone comes in with something I’ve never done before I say – I got you, you’ll love it.”
Custom jobs are Zentic’s specialty – from military-inspired patches to company logos and uniforms to designer car seats. One of her favorite techniques is the 3D puff that elevates the stitches with foam, adding dimension to the garment. Wowing her customers is the reward.
“I live for the look on people’s faces when they get their stuff,” she said. “That makes me feel good.”
Success is simple in Zentic’s book. Her bills are paid, her customers are happy – but more importantly, so are her kids. She’s proud to show them that hard work can be fun.
“I never get up in the morning dreading going to work,” she said. “I am always ready to get started.”