Obituary: Dean Sawyer built sewing centre into powerhouse

Obituary: Dean Sawyer built sewing centre into powerhouse Obituary: Dean Sawyer has died at age 75 from pancreatic cancer Darron Kloster Nov 15, 2024 3:43 AM Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message Dean Sawyer in 2004. “He would walk into a crowded room of strangers and come out with friends. That’s the way he was.

” TIMES COLONIST Listen to this article 00:05:58 Dean Sawyer, a personable entrepreneur and philanthropist who operated a sewing-machine business in Victoria for more than 30 years, has died. Sawyer was the second generation to run Sawyers Sewing Centre, taking over from his founding parents and working his way up from cleaning floors and fixing machines to running the retail business. He took it into the digital age and expanded the customer base to include mothers who made clothes for their families, male and female hobbyists, fashion designers and quilt makers.

Sawyer was 75 when he died on Nov. 2 from pancreatic ­cancer. Like his father before him, Sawyer in 2009 passed Sawyer Sewing Centre to his son, Jarret Sawyer, who continues to operate the largest sewing store on Vancouver Island at 3400 Douglas St.

The business was founded by Marion and David Sawyer on Fort Street in 1953. Friends said Sawyer’s tenacity and positive outlook on everyday life was infectious, which helped make him a success in business. Daughter Melanie Blecic said her father’s life motto was “life is good, no bad days .

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