Baby Lock Celebrating Over 40 Years of Innovation & Advancement

by Stephanie Weir

In 1967, the first home serger was released in the United States, forever changing the way that sewers completed projects in their own sewing room. This spirit of innovation was the foundation for Baby Lock, a St. Louis, MO-based sewing machine company that recently celebrated its 40 Year Anniversary. They’ve continued to discover breakthrough technology for sergers along with improving upon even the simplest sewing machine features -- all “for the love of sewing.”

“We’ve tapped into the reason people sew,” explained Steve Jeffery, president of Baby Lock USA. “They sew for the enjoyment, the relaxation, the satisfaction, and the joy -- for the love of sewing.”

This has inspired Baby Lock to enhance the love of sewing since the very beginning, over 40 years ago.

In 1956, several engineers and middle managers at a Japanese industrial company believed they could redesign the industrial serger they were currently manufacturing to be smaller and lighter -- this way, everyone could own a serger that would fit in their home sewing room. They presented their idea to management, but the concept was rejected.

This team was so committed to their idea, however, that they quit their job and formed their own company to design and build machines for the home sewer. More specifically, they wanted a smaller “baby” machine that was capable of producing an overlock stitch. After over a decade of developing and perfecting their idea, the first Baby Lock serger was released in 1967.

Since then, Baby Lock has kept innovation and “the love of sewing” in mind for all of their products. Today Baby Lock is known worldwide for their advancements in sergers with 14 patented advantages -- particularly the exclusive Jet-Air Threading™ technology that threads an entire serger with the touch of a button.

“Baby Lock’s Jet-Air Threading has taken the biggest challenge from serging -- threading -- and eliminated it,” explained Jeffery. “With the Jet-Air Threading system, you can thread our sergers in any order or sequence. No threads are exposed, so you have complete control of your thread resulting in a perfectly balanced stitch. Plus, people are amazed at how easy it is to thread your Baby Lock serger with Instant Jet-Air Threading!”

What’s more, Baby Lock continues to lead the way in advancements and innovation with a full line of quality sewing, embroidery and quilting machines, as well as a full line of software, stabilizer and accessories. The main goal for Baby Lock, said Jeffery, is to make the next 40 years just as groundbreaking.

“With our focus on innovation, technology and customer-focused ease of use, Baby Lock will continue to lead the way with products that are of the highest quality and the easiest to use,” said Jeffery. “This is so our consumers can continue to grow and enjoy serging, embroidery, quilting, home décor, crafting and fashion design. This is our commitment to all people who enjoy and participate in the creative expression of sewing.”

Reprinted from SQE Professional, February 2008