In 2004, ACE Sprit was started when Christy left teaching and was pregnant with our second daughter. She wanted to be able to work from home and stay with the girls. So, we created ACE Spirit out of our home. As it is, Christy is an alumnus of DeWitt, where we chose to raise our family. Her personal testimony to school spirit prevailed and we had the two girls – Allison and Emily. Thus, leading us to ACE Spirit from Allison, Christy, and Emily. Ironically, we left Matt out of it, or it would have been MACE or ACME!
Over the years, we have rolled through the gamut of products from silk screening, embroidery, heat press, banners, yard signs, and decals to now laser engraved and CNC routed wood.
Each member of the family plays a roll in making crafted products. Matt runs the laser engraver and CNC machine; Christy makes the signs and decals; and Allison does the painting, resin, and shipping of the products. Our two cats (Kyle and Kloe) and two dogs (Tiki and Rummy) even try to get in on the process leaving pet hair everywhere!
As we continue to create and build inventory, the business has served more of a purpose than a hobby. Using the concept inventory and customer orders, Allison was able to generate her own business plan of a cupcake shop for a Personal Finance course in high school. She also formulated a plan where she makes a portion of the profits based on her manual labor to save for her college funds.