The staff at Fabricana and Interior Delights pride themselves on offering customers not only an extensive selection of fabrics, but also expert advice and solutions, whether they’re sewing a graduation dress or decorating a room. Since the first Fabricana store was opened in 1969 in Richmond by Richard Megrian, the family-owned and operated business has expanded to include two Fabricana stores and two Interior Delights stores in Richmond and Coquitlam.

“Our key to success is that we have such a vast variety and selection of different types of textiles,” says Greg Megrian, Richard’s son and president of the company. “We’re also able to offer great pricing because of the volume we do and because we import products directly — from Asia and Europe — instead of going through wholesalers.”

The company also uses its strong buying power to pass on great savings to its Interior Delights customers. Whether you’re looking for home-décor ideas or fabrics for everything from drapery to upholstery to bedding, you can find a wide selection at Interior Delights. And because of the large selection of in-stock fabrics, customers can take their purchases home immediately, instead of having to order from samples.

“There are a lot of smaller operations that work off samples but  we’re able to buy from the mills directly and keep the merchandise in stock — that enables us to offer the prices we do,” explains Megrian.

Along with great prices and selection comes the experience of a staff trained by the Megrians, who have been in textiles for three generations. “The fabric knowledge that the people on our team have is immense.”

Fabricana is so well known for its expertise that it’s the store that professional designers and interior decorators turn to for their projects. “We deal with a lot of designers who specialize in various areas, including designers who make gowns for weddings and graduation or who specialize in active wear, like skating and dance costumes.”

It’s also not uncommon to see costume and set designers for locally produced television shows at Fabricana, says Megrian.

“People often come and ask for advice on the right type of fabric to buy for a certain type of design or pattern. Sometimes they’ve already started something and say, ‘Help!’” he says. “I’m proud to say that our staff go out of their way to find solutions for people. I think that’s why people come back to us.”

Whether it’s for help with a design, fresh ideas for their home or special fabrics for a movie set, Fabricana’s customers always find they’ve come to the right place.