Rising From the Ashes?

I am fascinated by how the demise of Joanns is reshaping the sewing and craft industry. I was at Hobby Lobby yesterday and noticed that their McCall’s patterns were $2.99 (previously $4.99). The Simplicity website is also running 75% off sales on patterns. I don’t think the market will bear $15-30 for a Big 7 pattern, not after Joanns discounted them to $1.99 each (or $5.99 for Vogue) on a regular basis, and not when many high-quality indie patterns are available in the $10-12 range.

As for Joann Fabrics, this is on their website:

It states, “We’re stitching something new behind the scenes and we can’t wait to share what’s next.”

If “what’s next” is an online-only store, I think that’s going to miss the mark. The June issue of Craft Industry Insider arrived in my e-mail box yesterday morning. This is a publication of Craft Industry Alliance and is a great way to keep up on current events in the sewing and crafting industry. The lead article noted that an industry research paper presented at the recent h+h Americas trade show in Chicago found that customers are showing a marked preference for shopping in person at brick-and-mortar stores as opposed to shopping online.

Dispatches From the Desk of the Obvious, indeed. Some things, like fabric, are best shopped for in person. Joanns corporate—in whatever form is still exists—is going to have to learn to listen to what customers want if it wants to be successful.

And, of course, this is a great opportunity for independent fabric stores to seize some of the market share if they are willing to make the effort.

Speaking of McCall’s patterns, I snagged this one at Hobby Lobby yesterday.

I found myself reaching for my half-zip and quarter-zip tops a lot last winter.

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I haven’t gotten plants into the ground yet, mostly due to lack of time and waiting for my foot to heal a bit more, but that turned out to be a good thing. The temp this morning, as I write this, is 30F. It has been hard to plan my week because the forecast changes every time I look at it. Tomorrow may be a good day to plant. After that, it is supposed to warm up again.

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Still no word from QuickBooks, and my mother e-mailed me yesterday that she was having issues. She was trying to do an update to her payroll module and the system crashed. The support rep told her the system crashed due to all the new subscribers.

This is my skeptical face. 🧐

QuickBooks is quickly becoming something that needs to be burned down and rebuilt. (Rather like Joann Fabrics, actually.)