ACOT Message Board

Just read an article on Joann’s filed Bankruptcy second time in 2 years. Fingers crossed that a stalking horse company will buy them out and keep them open!
I am sooooo sad .  That being said the AC part of their business might have helped put them under. 

I was in there earlier this morning for Valentine Decorations and the shelves were pretty empty everywhere.  We have a super center too.  All of the craft/scrapbook section looked like it was on clearance.  And as always, the line was ridiculous because there are 6 registers and only 1 open.

Sad news. Ours just changed locations and reopened in Nov.

VickiR wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 15, 2025 4:09 pm

I was in there earlier this morning for Valentine Decorations and the shelves were pretty empty everywhere.  We have a super center too.  All of the craft/scrapbook section looked like it was on clearance.  And as always, the line was ridiculous because there are 6 registers and only 1 open.

Makes me incredibly sad … 

Too bad. I think people buy some of the more generic craft stuff from Amazon and it hurts those stores. 

I hate seeing stores go under. I haven’t been in a Joanns for years because there isn’t one up here. But I remember in Florida they were over half an hour away and it was all lights and traffic to get there. I rarely found things there that I wanted so I quit making the effort. Isn’t it the last place you can go to get fabric, patterns and such for sewing???

Our two local Joann's have been pathetic for years so I'm not that surprised. 

We have a small Joann's.   It's 70% fabric and 30% crafts and home decor.  I go in when their beads strands are on sale.   I like to make stick pins with them.  I can get more  of a selection on their website.

Hobby Lobby has a decent fabric section.   You can buy a variety  of remnants at Walmart. 

Both our local Joann's and Micheals have had severely depleted shelves lately. I've been wondering all along if either or both are going to go under. I'll be very sad if Joann's goes - it is close to my home and has the best fabric selection.

I really hope that does not happen. Mine is always a mess and not really cleaned well but they have .30 cent Bazzill sometimes and it is close by. That would be a big shame. 

I used to go to JF at least 2 or 3 times month back before the pandemic. But, recently, between the empty shelves, declining quality of the fabric in my local store, poor customer service, and general ick-everything-looks-dingy atmosphere, I stopped going. Maybe that's why I've stopped quilting and have double-downed on papercrafting!

aheatfan wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 15, 2025 7:36 pm

I really hope that does not happen. Mine is always a mess and not really cleaned well but they have .30 cent Bazzill sometimes and it is close by. That would be a big shame. 

Same- I go to one by my daughter’s house when I visit her. 

The info I read didn't say there was a stalking horse, but there was a bid from a Gordon Bros (I think that's who it was) that is a liquidator and if no one else bids higher than them then it will be sold to them and the business liquidated.

Reread the article - Gordon is the stalking horse, but to liquidate the company.
 The company announced that it's seeking court approval to start a process for the sale of substantially all of its assets to Gordon Brothers Retail Partners LLC. Gordon would serve as the "stalking horse" bidder, which is a party that agrees to make an initial bid for the assets of the bankrupt company, often before a formal auction process begins. According to Joann, Gordon Brothers has indicated that it intends to pursue a liquidation of the company and conduct going out-of-business sales at all store locations. 

So hopefully there is some other company that is interested in buying J's to keep it as a going concern.

Thanks for the info! The higher prices of everything has taken its toll. Started with Covid. So very sad. I love getting my Bazzil paper on sale there! Everyone trying to save penny. Scratch that, save a dollar. Online email has definitely hurt businesses. All you have to do is look malls. Nothing permanent in life but change. Makes me sad.

Even though I rarely shop there, I'm sad to see another craft store closing.  Our JF has a very small paper crafting section and I don't sew, so no need to patronize their shop.  However, there are so many stores closing in the shopping center where JF is located.  Big Lots (which is right next door) is also closing it's doors and there are other vacant spots in that strip mall as well.  What will they fill all those empty spaces with??  Just makes me sad.  That's all. 

I'm sad whenever any arts and crafts store closes! It's JUST unfair! 
I miss going to the fabric store with my mom back in the day; when most of the fabric stores went under, we had the other stores and those store sold more arts and crafts supplies; I JUST blame the economy for a LOT of things! Lol
As someone who loves all the arts, I get sad about bookstores closing, too. Just unfair!

VickiR wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 15, 2025 4:09 pm

I was in there earlier this morning for Valentine Decorations and the shelves were pretty empty everywhere.  We have a super center too.  All of the craft/scrapbook section looked like it was on clearance.  And as always, the line was ridiculous because there are 6 registers and only 1 open.

Oh yes! Seems to be the way ALL these (brick and mortar) stores are run these days! I mean, it's annoying on both ends. As a cashier, I wish my store had better profits- SO that we could actually have MORE cashiers again! As a customer, I WISH there was MORE cashiers so the lines weren't as long! 
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Mommytron wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 16, 2025 11:33 am

Thanks for the info! The higher prices of everything has taken its lol. Started with Covid. So very sad. I love getting my Bazzil paper on sale there! Everyone trying to save penny. Scratch that, save a dollar. Online email has definitely hurt businesses. All you have to do is look malls. Nothing permanent in life but change. Makes me sad.

I know what you mean! 
 

Birgit55 wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 16, 2025 1:28 pm

Even though I rarely shop there, I'm sad to see another craft store closing.  Our JF has a very small paper crafting section and I don't sew, so no need to patronize their shop.  However, there are so many stores closing in the shopping center where JF is located.  Big Lots (which is right next door) is also closing it's doors and there are other vacant spots in that strip mall as well.  What will they fill all those empty spaces with??  Just makes me sad.  That's all. 

YES! You would think someone would turn these empty places into low income housing to deal with that crisis, but.... Eventually a lot of these just end up as dilapidated spaces and it's truly sad!