Joann’s Fans, There’s Hope: Michaels Acquired Joann’s Intellectual Property Rights
We’ve all been grouch potatoes over the closing of Joann’s. Whether it’s the memories, the worry about new crafters finding affordable products, or losing access to your favorite yarns and fabrics, it’s been a rough few weeks. But there’s hope on the horizon as Michaels acquired Joann’s Intellectual Property Rights!
In the wake of the announcement of the closure of Joann’s, I put together two helpful posts. Here you can find out where to find the same yarns and fabrics you love, and some suggestions for replacements.
Other companies like Lion Brand who sold in Joann’s stores have dedicated sections of their sites to Joann shoppers to help them in the wake of the closures.
What’s Going on with Michaels and Their Acquisition of Joann’s Intellectual Property Rights?
On June 5th, Michaels announced that they had acquired the intellectual property from their bankrupt competitor Joann Fabrics. This move is not totally pure of heart, they hope to gain more business now that we have less options to shop. But it’s not all selfish. This move gives new life to lines of fabric, yarn, and notions that we all love. According to the press release from Michaels, this move will enable Michaels to offer around 600 new (Joann’s) products in their stores.
Currently Michaels has a reported 1,300 stores. Of those, 680 stores have rolled out these new product offerings. They plan to add them to around 280 more stores this year according to the same press release. Michaels says that it plans to expand their offerings from the large names that we love like Lion Brand, Bernat, and Red Heart, but that they also plan to bring back a number of Big Twist yarns that were exclusively available at Joanns.
Michales has rolled out the(ir signature) red carpet for us, with a new landing page dedicated to all of the products we loved at Joanns.
Breaking It Down:
This crafter is cautiously optimistic. When Joann’s actually closed their doors, I was looking for a quick, affordable circular needle so I hopped into the car. I gave Michaels a try. It was terrible. I don’t like being negative but I have to say, that their yarn section wasn’t inspiring anyone to pick up knitting or crochet. There was hardly anything there. And when I looked at the needles that they did have, I swear the sizing was off. (I didn’t have a gauge tool with me so I can’t confirm, but it was pretty bad). I ended up leaving and trying Hobby Lobby. Despite it’s own shortcomings, it was better than Michaels.
At first the news was really exciting! When Michaels acquired Joann’s intellectual property rights, we all thought they might actually step up their game. But they need to take a big giant step to convince me to get on board. It’s more like an entire staircase actually. In their press release, they listed yarn brands that they were bringing back from Joanns, but it was all just different big twist brands. And I’ve not been a fan of Big Twist for a minute now. You can find better quality yarns for the same price from Lion Brand and Yarnspirations. Maybe they’re focusing on sewing first, as they are really working on partnerships with Brother and Singer. It makes sense too, they already offer more fabric than they do yarn. So maybe they’re starting with what’s more in their wheel house?
Currently I’ll be going directly to manufacturers that I know and like to buy. I’ll be sure to work harder to link all the tools and materials that I use in my products to help you find what you need to knit my patterns or craft along with me. Also, please bear with me as I go through an update the links in my posts that previously went to Joann’s listings.
