It started on cold, blustery Friday morning in January 2015. I hatched an idea for a new product that I wanted to develop, so I called an old friend, whose family-operated company has been in the burlap business for more than 100 years, to explore my manufacturing options. I wanted to learn if I could make this product from burlap.
Little did I know when we sat down in his conference room that morning that my product idea would take a back seat to building a new brand.
We talked about my idea, and he said that he could make anything out of burlap, but he didn’t know if the chemical reaction with salt would be an issue with the burlap. Would it stay in tact or would it deteriorate?
With that unanswered question still lingering, he invited me to tour of the manufacturing facility. I had been here several times in the past, but it had been well over a decade since my last visit. Surprisingly, nothing had changed.
A bank of 10 sewing machines were whirring in unison on the right side of the concrete factory floor. Asian ladies had been replaced mostly by Latina women and a sole man. Forklifts were shuttling heavy bales of burlap across the floor. Machinery was clacking as large bolts of folded burlap fabric were being rolled-up into manageable lengths for cutting.
Further down the plant floor, in a room separated by heavy vertical plastic slats, was larger, louder equipment. Burlap fabric was being treated with a copper and ammonia solution. The copper solution makes the burlap last longer when it’s buried in the ground. The ammonia is used to rinse out the copper residue. Burlap emerged with a deep, olive-green, military-like color.
The odor was so powerful and the irritant from the ammonia so strong that I felt like I was going to throw-up. How could anyone work in that environment for a minute let alone a lifetime, I thought.
While much of what I saw that day was being sold to nurseries and growers and garden centers, that wasn’t entirely the case. Even though the sewing machines and equipment were as old as the company, a new trend was emerging in burlap industry.
Burlap had taken on a life in and around the home. This plain woven, crude, salt-of-the-earth fabric that has been the economic lifeblood of India for hundreds of years was now a cool, chic home decor and crafting product used by crafters, brides-to-be, and anyone looking to add rustic flare to their home. Burlap wasn’t just for garden centers, nurseries and flood barriers anymore.
It was on my tour of the shop floor that my idea was hatched. My idea broadened from the launch of a single product to the launch of a brand — Burlapper.
The birth of Burlapper started with a single listing on amazon.com. We specified the product; we inspected, hand-folded and packed it into poly bags. We created labels and inserted them into the bags, and we shipped the merchandise to Amazon so it could be sold under Amazon Prime. The day our shipment arrived at Amazon, we made our first sale. Burlapper was official.
Jump forward to today, and we have over 50 products in the Burlapper line with more launching regularly. Much has changed on the product quality and sourcing side of our business. Our first year we spent a lot of time combing through the fabric making sure that it looked good as craft project material or as a table runner for the bride-to-be on her big day. We now offer 3 grades of fabric ranging from lighter 7 oz to heavy 12 ounces. We sell a popular line of garden fabric, and we have the ability to cut and roll virtually any size of burlap on our own in-house equipment.
What started as an idea became a brand, and is now a woman-owned, family-operated company.
Our burlap is sourced from India not China, and we are a stickler for quality in an industry that rarely worried about quality standards. We have listened and read customer feedback and have taken many steps to continuously improve product quality — such as buying heavier grades of burlap — and we ensure that every piece of burlap we sell meets our stringent standards.
We have even taken the stink out of burlap by buying hydrocarbon-free fabric when available.
We are all about customer service, and work closely with our clients to ensure they get what they want and expect from us. This care is why we enjoy a 5-star, 100% satisfaction seller rating on Amazon.
We have the ability to make custom orders whether for your wedding, home, garden or work. If you don’t see what you’re looking for, simply ask!
We’d love to hear how you’re using Burlapper burlap , and would welcome the opportunity to speak with you about your experience using our fabrics.
We strive to bring the best burlap to market that we can, and we’re proud that our products are available online in the US, Canada and shipped worldwide.
In addition to being sold on amazon.com and amazon.ca, Burlapper is available on walmart.com, etsy.com , jet.com, and our own online stores at burlapper.com and sourcedly.com.
You can also locate our products on our Facebook page, and we will be enhancing our social media efforts, so please take a minute to Like and follow-us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.
And best of all, Burlapper® is now a registered trademark with the US Patent and Trademark office.
In a world of increasing copycats and counterfeiters online, buyer beware. If it’s not sold by Sourcedly on one of our official channels, then it’s not Burlapper brand burlap.
We welcome your questions, comments and product inquiries. Please reach out by phone (toll-free in US and Canada) or email us anytime.