Investigating My Local JOANN Fabrics Store
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ย. 2024
- After seeing all of your reports from various JOANN Fabrics stores, I had to check it out for myself and investigate my local haunt. Literally, it was haunted with tons of Halloween decor & seasonal merchandise. This was the same store I visited several months ago in a previous tour. Has it changed? Is it adequately staffed? We're about to find out!
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Is JOANN Fabrics in Trouble? - Tough times for longtime fabric & craft supply retailer JOANN Fabrics... th-cam.com/users/li...
The Downfall of JOANN Fabrics - Taking a deep dive into what's behind the downfall of JOANN Fabrics. th-cam.com/users/li...
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*Shop with Me at JOANN Fabrics (1st Time in YEARS!)* (previous vlog) th-cam.com/video/Ql6QG3HXcdI/w-d-xo.html
*Is JOANN Fabrics in Trouble?* - Tough times for longtime fabric & craft supply retailer JOANN Fabrics th-cam.com/users/live3K0_btcLMVg
*The Downfall of JOANN Fabrics* - Taking a deep dive into what's behind the downfall of JOANN Fabrics th-cam.com/users/liveGYehs5PW3B4
Before Joann started building these mega stores in our metro area, the stores were dedicated to fabric and notions and the occasional holiday speciality Knick knacks. The store in my area was on the lower level of a mall and had an outside entrance. I doubt it was over 1000 sq Dr including the back room. It was crammed with fabric bolts and was magical. It was perfect!!! Bring that back!
Much of that 50%, 60%, etc. reduced merchandise has never really been full price. As far back as (I don’t want to say) the 80’s we would get sunglasses displays that came as 50% off. It was never intended to be full price, just to trick shoppers into thinking they are getting a deal.
Yes - this is also the game Kohl’s and Hobby Lobby play as if we’re too stupid to realize those ornaments were never $18.99.
I was a store manager for them in the 90’s and everything came in already “on sale”. It’s a joke and shouldn’t be allowed. I know lots of chains do this, but it’s just wrong.
I miss Hancock Fabrics. My Joanns are ok but I wish they were more focused on quality fabric.
Hancock was truly the store for sewers.
I also miss Fabricland and House of Fabrics. They had beautiful fabrics.
Dating myself, But Minnesota Fabrics was my favorite sewing store.
All of our Joann fabrics in the area are ghost towns and do not keep fabric stocked the way they used to. I talked to a couple ladies who work at one of them and they said they get random bolts, not specific fabrics ordered as they run out, as it used to be. They said it’s complete chaos now and they mentioned the rows and rows of that binky fleece or whatever it’s called. Takes up all of the original bridal fabric aisle. The stores are messy and full of things that have nothing to do with sewing/creating.
Joann fabric really needs to go back to the olden days, where you could book a class and learn a skill related to the products that they sell on the floor. If they would revamp their business model and go back and focus on the actual skill building workshops they could probably Save their stores
I wish they would just go back to selling fabric and sewing notions. This is just out of hand. I rarely go to my neighborhood store much anymore. It is a lot of junk. I want to buy good quality fabric for my sewing needs. Keep crafts at the craft store and keep good quality craft supplies there.
Yes, it’s mostly dollar store quality “decor” and “entertaining” items.
I just don't think they can make a go of it only selling sewing and related items. To those of us involved in sewing and crafting, it seems like a big community, but not that many people actually sew anymore. 🫤
I’m sad and hope somehow they can manage to stay afloat! There needs to be a Martha Stewart type investor to help direct them. Sounds like upper management is just a bunch of college degrees with no experience that think they know it all.
I have some news for you. We have a well known deadstock website in the UK, rainbow fabrics. The Autumn fabric drop is this year's Joann premium range (it's written on the selvage) which means Joann didn't pay the factory and it ended up here instead.
Whoa.
I don’t doubt it at all…
welcome to private equity owned fabric stores. it stopped being enough to just sell fabric and notions and supplies (like they did when it was Cloth World) and now are trying to compete with Michaels and Hobby Lobby and Dollar Tree and whatever else (and the funny/sad thing is they are all essentially selling the same thing with different tags on it)
Joann is really trying to compete with Hobby Lobby. I agree, I wish they would go back to selling fabric and notions also.
As someone who used to work for a Joann, I can tell they just had a truck come in. So yeah. There's a lot of carts and tubs around the store. But imagine trying to help customers, manage the register, cut fabric, and stock merchandise according to a very specific planogram. Some things get left behind to finish more important tasks, mostly helping customers. It sucks. It gets difficult. You can't judge a store because they have to redo displays while stocking and have to leave some carts and boxes around to help the customers who are shopping. And the messes in the fabric aisles? Customers. All customers, I can tell you that right now. Don't blame employees for customers leaving fabric everywhere in any way they want. At the end of the night we always had to clean the store, and you'd find messes of fabric that an employee would have never made. You wouldn't believe the things I saw customers do, that's why fabric gets a mess like that. It's the shoppers. And with the seasonal decor, they price it high to begin with so they can put it on big sales so you think, "Oh wow, 50% off already? I'll get it!" and they still make a profit. It's always like that. And yes, people buy the decor ALL THE TIME. Yes, we have some leftover at the end of each season, but what store doesn't? Maybe you don't like it, but trust me, that home decor stuff sells like crazy during the right time. Also, niche fabric does sell. I had people ask for camera fabric, rubber duck fabric, bubble fabric, orange and green striped fabric, gold shimmer fabric, black and yellow sequin fabric, orange fur fabric, cow print fabric before it was popular. You have to have a big selection. If they didn't, all they would have was boring prints and solids you could get anywhere. Trust me, it might be "niche" to you, but there's a buyer market for a lot of those. Sure, I agree that they should focus more on good fabric and high end craft supplies. But what can you do about it? If you don't like it, don't shop there. It's as simple as that.
Way more people shop for craft supplies and fabric for wacky projects than sew garment these days. I totally get why there is such a small selection of garment fabric - just these changing times. It is sad, but I feel the same way about a lot of retail. I miss the selection and variety. I miss the mall and the shopping experience. 🫤
I work in the fabric department at Hobby Lobby and I agree with everything you just said. We also stay after work to clean up, and you wouldn’t believe the surprises people leave us behind the bolts of fabric. The strangest thing I’ve found so far has been a full size lamp just left on the floor!
I live in Jacksonville Fl and I worked at Joann’s last year and this report sounds just like the store I worked for last year. They’re so understaffed and I’m sure you don’t want to see the stock room. The one where I worked at was to the roof full of boxes.
The thing that really drives me bonkers about my Joann fabric store is the lack of price check scanners. They have been shut down for years now. I asked the manager about this and he said they were supposed to replace them.
This store looked amazing compared to my store Jen! The Husqvarna Viking associates don’t work for Joann they are separate, I know this because I worked for them for years. As far as the seasonal decor that’s big business girl especially with all the Instagram influencers decorating their homes etc. I wish they would focus more on the fabrics because they are getting less and less each year. They are a huge disappointment for me right now and I’ve stopped shopping with them and have been getting my fabrics at Hobby Lobby, better prices, the store is always sharp and there are always associates on the floor and at the cash wraps.
Looks to me like a reset of different areas in the stores. As a former employee of JoAnns the company does a lot of resets per season. Crafters who sell at craft fairs, bazaars, etc need to plan ahead of the seasons to make their inventory and so there needs to be Christmas items and supplies even in July. People DO buy seasonal things early..such as Halloween and Christmas and yes they do buy every year as new items come available. This store is apparently in a large city area. Smaller stores are not as fortunate to have as much to offer the customer and most likely aren’t as disorganized as this location is.
Your Florida Joann's is huge in comparison to the one in my area. It really looks like they need to have a smaller store with more sewing and craft focused items. Also, the seasonal stuff has got to go because it doesn't look like it will move quickly.
Same here. Our Joann's is way smaller and theres never more than 5 or six workers in the store at any given time. They move from the fabrics to the front cashier some times. Your Joann's is large.
I Would like to see more coordinated fabric! My store is always out of things that I want to buy! It's very frustrating! In some cases, it takes months before they restock an item. The staff is always pleasant, but at times the lines are really long with one cashier. Some of the fabric could be of a better quality!!! Since your report, I can see it's really upper management and the buyers who are really the problem. If they treat their employees poorly it will only get worse and they don't have very much more room to fall!
The store you showed is what we call a Super Store. Most stores are a lot smaller, with no framing area, etc.. . Some of these smaller stores are the ones people are saying that closing. Unfortunately, in my area, Joann bought up the competition, and left us stranded within just their stores. I'd like to see more competition. Hobby Lobby is a No Go for many of us.
Jo-Ann's in Redlands, CA. Three employees. Maybe. Manager hides in employee lunchroom. Very little fabric. No wool. No Challis. No handkerchief linen. No batiste. Cheapest quality cottons, highest possible pricing. Pattern drawers missing. Patterns in boxes, not filed. Rude cashiers except for the older ones who aren't there much any more. AWFUL STORE!!!
yes! People are buying lots of skeletons for subdivision displays, garden displays, and outside of homes. As soon as the Halloween product went out, my store was selling it out the door. The market has decided they want more Halloween. The regular candle section has been reset and waiting for the new product to come in. Also, the planograms (sections of merchandise according to niche) seem to be going through data analysis to decide which products have low turnover and then moving those items out to make more room for higher selling items. Just my opinion.
I haven't noticed much difference at my local Joann. Maybe not as busy as it was pre-covid. But it has always been adequately staffed. The manager is always present and helping with registers or cutting table should she be needed. And I agree, too much home decor items and it does get sale priced early, but I think they always have don't this.
My local Joanne only has 9 employees!
With that, I’m a former team member that just recently left, I’d love to chat with you at the company from an employee standpoint.
Your local store is larger and better stocked than the one near me and up until I watched this video, I was wondering if our store was getting ready to close. Shame on whoever is ordering for Joanns because the stores seem to be getting in alot of unnecessary junk. From what I've heard, Joanns bought out So Fro Fabrics. I wish Joanns had stuck to just fabrics, patterns, notions, etc. The yarns and needlework items are okay too. As for the home decor, it's Joanns FABRICS AND CRAFTS. Whay happened to buying the materials to MAKE your own decorations. I have also been really disappointed with the book selection lately too. Why are they carrying books on air fryer recipes when they don't sell air fryers, yet they stock fewer sewing and craft books than before. Sorry for the rant, but I used to enjoy shopping in Joanns, but now all they are is a disappointment. Thank you for the informative video.
It seems odd that so many of the store’s have ACs that are not working. Maybe a cost saving ploy and they’ve only told the employees that it’s broken.
From what I've heard, the stores are only allowed to receive and put away the truck during open operation hours now. That could explain the mess with the boxes.
They've cut a ton of positions, particularly full-time employees.
I don't understand why JoAnn's carries fake plants and holiday decor. JoAnn's spreads themselves waaaaaaay to thin. I also can't understand why JoAnn's hires employees that don't sew, crochet, knit or have any kind of crafting hobby. Instead of sticking to yarn and fabric and sewing-related items, they stock their shelves full of stuff that doesn't sell well or can be picked up at discounts stores for far less than JoAnn's sale prices. Leadership should invest in providing sewing classes and encouraging the crafting-related classes to encourage and promote what they are selling in their stores. Corporate leadership seems to be completely oblivious as to what is going on in their stores. They need to talk directly with customers to find out what customers want. I get the impression that leadership has NO idea how to run a successful retail company since the majority of them and the Board come from completely unrelated industries and businesses. And then there's the Ditto system that will cause their ultimate demise. The only thing I buy at JoAnn's are $1.99 patterns and sometimes fabric from clearance tables or fabric that has been drastically reduced. I never buy fabric at JoAnn's that is marked down less than 60%, which is priced way too high per yard to begin with.
Speaking as someone who’s been sewing for 40+ years I go to my local store for fabrics,patterns, and notions. I can’t think of anything I’ve purchased that’s not sewing related at JoAnn’s. They’re not reading their customers at all
Jen, those totes are typical ways of shipping small and miscellaneous merchandise. Yes, planograms are “maps” that tell you how to set up the merchandise in the gondola, end cap, rack, etc. Management in retail usually frowns upon having freight left all over the sales floor. Usually freight is kept off the floor and if it needs to be worked during open hours only one cart is brought out to be worked. I guess Joann’s isn’t worried about liability issues. I’ve never worked for this company but have worked for other retail companies as a stocker. I need to stop by my local store to see what’s going on.
I just wrote her a novel. You are so correct.
I just went to JoAnns yesterday and it was a mess! I saw 2 people working the cut table. That moved pretty quickly. I really liked the new Jumbotron thing that shows your place in line. As we walked around the store it was very messy, lots of empty shelves, tons of Halloween and skeleton stuff. When I checked out there were 2 cashiers. The stored seemed pretty empty. I had no wait at checkout but I did have a few people in front of me and after me at the cut counter. It’s sad to see such a decline at JoAnns.
I'm jealous of your store!! Mine is smaller, older and less well organized
What is the deal with the missing shopping carts - it feels like a lost episode of The X-Files or something. My store has a sign on the door (for months now) that they only have 2 shopping carts and more are on order - what happened to all the carts?
The Framing department had been closed for a long time and it has now been removed entirely. There is inventory stacked in the isles. I wonder though, if some of the carts w/ bins of random bits might be pick-up orders?
I wish they would put the focus back on everyday/casual garment fabric - it's more novelty & cos-play items.
I'm concerned by what seems like the replacement of fulltime employees with parttime employees - is this a cost cutting measure - but seems a little cringy.
Joann is trying to compete with Hobby Lobby. I remember when you went in there for decent fabric. I was in there a couple of weeks ago and there were 3 people working the store, one was in the office. I had ordered thread to pick up when I was going to the grocery store. One girl at the cut bar. Staring at a smart screen of some type, leaning on the counter. One at the cash register, doing nothing. I bought a couple of things on super clearance, storage boxes and asked about my order. Oh, order???? 2 threads, took her 10 minutes. Both employees aprons were so dirty and covered in what looked like food. This used to be my favorite store in the area and it looks like a garage sale now. Sad.
My local JoAnn only has 2 employees working in the evening!
On weekends they have at least 4, and we are waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting to get fabrics cut.
And I am not surprised if JoAnn closes in my area, they are so stingy with the fabric cut, right at the one yard, not giving you an extra just in case the last cut was uneven!
It’s very common for joanns stores to be disorganized and chaotic. It’s mostly due to hour cuts. At my towns store they have gone from 300-400 hours one week down to 200 another. I believe it started happening after Joann’s went open in the stocks in 2021. Most of the stocking issues stem from inadequate coverage for stocking specifically. Most stores try to focus on actual interactions between customers. It’s unfortunate, but please don’t take it out on the employees, blame the company. We all are upset about it.
This looks like a really clean store you were at compared to the one that I just ran across in Phoenix Arizona on Tatum Boulevard. I wish I could show the pictures here, it was horrible! There were so many spills on the ground that was just left to dry. There was even a trail that looked like somebody cut themselves and walked up to the front of the store and you could follow the blood trail. (yes, I have a picture of that too.) The store had not been swept in months. It looks like garbage stacked overflowing in bins. I even stopped and asked a worker what was going on, and she just shrugged and said they only let us work part time.
Hi Thanks for this Vlog! I live here in S. Florida, and have 3 Joann's within 20 minutes of me. They aren't very busy, but clean and pleasant. I used to be able to get some 100% Cotton prints that were a bit more Masculine, I make Head wraps, and Surgical hats. And there are No choices anymore, everything is to Cute. I keep looking at all my local stores. 😎🌴☀️
Like Michael's and Hobby Lobby, they have everything marked down significantly, likely due to the economy. People are buying less, so if they don't want to go under, they have to sell more things for less, rather than less things for more. Fall stuff was 40% off at Hobby Lobby in September, and they were already putting out Christmas inventory marked down at 50% off and the prices never went up, they are still 50% off. Hobby Lobby made the choice to discontinue their coupons, and made the statement that they are going to offer cheaper prices across the board. They are already selling out of a lot of Christmas items here in Southern California, and it's not even December yet, and they had the isles crammed with inventory, and tons of stock in the rafters. I was just in there yesterday and the lines are ridiculously long, everyone with full carts. This is a good move which will leave them with far less stock when the season is over. I've noticed Michaels and JoAnn's doing something similar, though they both still offer coupons. There's 2 things I believe are happening; 1. People are spending less due to the economy, and to generate spending the prices needed to fall, and 2. Remember all the shipping containers that were held up in our ports for months? I think there may be inventory overload. My JoAnn's, Michael's and Hobby Lobby are all full of inventory and are all having massive sales. I do hope everything will be okay.
My local Joann’s has lots and lots of empty space, and it’s not that big a store. Too bad they don’t fill it with NICE linen, silk, or wool fabrics.
Sounds like they are clearing out the warehouse and this is how they do it. They flood the stores with old merchandise at clearance prices to make room for new stuff. Considering they have filed Chapter 11, they need to sell off everything they can so that they can restructure their business. They may close some stores, but the majority will remain open.
Also, the retail business works six months ahead of the season. So fall will be out in June and Spring in December.
Hope this helps clear things up.
From what I've heard Joann's problem is reduction in people purchasing. People do good to buy food let alone fabric. There will be more stores that sell non necessary items that close. It's inflation.They should have never reduced the Pandemic EBT and other things.People had more money for extras .
I live in a rural area but when I visit my son I check out the Joanns nearby. Omg it's really gone downhill this past year. Hardly any apparel fabric. I stick with Stylemaker for excellent apparel fabrics. Spendy but clean and fabulous quality.
The Joann's near me is much smaller but still super frustrating. Theor hours have been cut, inconsistently and there are almost never more than 2 employees. I was chatting with the manager and asked her if she had seen your prior video or k ew about the corporate issues. She had no idea but asked me to send a link to her. She admitted that she doesnt sew but " knows how to manage". She seems frustrated by lack of help, but nobody can survive here ( San Francisco Bay area) on what they pay. We have one quilt shop locally with very limited hours and selection so, as a quilter, I am forced to shop online for the most part. There is a Hobby Lobby buy I wo t shop there oartly due to their support of right wing causes, and oartly because of limited, cheap sewing items amd too much "decor".
Where I live in Philadelphia, Pa, people started decorating for Halloween almost as soon as school started again in September - it's HUGE around here! Other chains are putting Xmas out already, too. Holiday stuff is almost always "50% off" but that doesn't mean anything - it's just to make you think you're getting a deal - it was designed to sell at 50% off. Every major retailer uses Planograms so employees know where to put the stuff from the totes you saw full of merch waiting to be put out. Joann may be putting more hours into bigger stores and closing smaller ones in the future so folks will need to go to a bigger location that has more to sell - saves rent. I sew and wish Joann had more, better fabric than they do - online fabric retailers have much better quality and selection, but you can't beat the pattern sales at Joann!
I do know that they have had a new "product buyer" for the company since about 1.5 years ago. It takes time to get new and better products in the store. Lots of planograms have been updated and those empty spaces are waiting for new product to come in. It could be a case of management resetting the section way ahead of schedule. The whole fabrics side of the stores are being reset to shift product lines around and it looks like they're expanding the Keepsake Calico section. It's just a matter of time for the new product to come in.
The store by my house is ran by like 2 old ladys lol took forever to get my yarn. They need help. But the store seems not busy. I feel like they are trying to compete with big lots or walmart and it should just be online. They suck at fulfillment rn
Your Joann's is huge compared to my Joann's. But your right, why do they need that many skeletons🤣 I don't pay to much attention to details when I go to my Joann. I usually head for the yarn but I did notice that there isn't that much yarn there anymore, same like my Hobby Lobby they really cut down on yarn.
And good luck finding anything other than acrylic or cotton. That's all JoAnn has now. At least HL has a very, very small selection of sock yarn and wool yarn still. It used to be a whole row, now it's like six feet.
Wow, I've been to a few Joann stores in my area lately and only 1 has any substantial stock (Dublin, CA). At least the staff at this location are nice and try to be helpful. Although today, they were completely out of what we needed. Go figure! Also, 2 of the other stores I've visited were horrid. The first (El Cerrito, CA), looked like a 1989 Moscow grocery store. I swear it looked like the store had been ransacked. The second (San Leandro, CA), the sales people were surly, the store was messy, and I had to track down an employee so I could buy an overlock machine. Today we were told by phone they didn't have time to check a stock item and to call back in an hour because they were busy and only had two workers. This location also has two additional taxes at checkout to pay - a district tax and a parish tax! I've never seen these taxes in other Bay Area cities. Maybe Joann should merge with Michael's and the new store should be called Mike & Jo.
The skeletons belong to customers past who died in line while waiting on that one cashier in her neon green apron to ring up the entire crowd while she pauses to answer the phone, run an online purchase out to somebody's car, page the framer who stays in hiding and radio a manager to bring her some ones because she just ran out and can't make change.
That fabric section is appalling. Considering how expensive some of those fabrics are seeing them wadded up and James together would turn my off from buying there.
I went in to buy interfacing for half off, but the regular price was almost $8! I did buy 3 spools of Thread to get 3 free. The spools of thread were $7 each!
I will comment about stores in two states as I am mid-move.
Albuquerque, NM. 23 years ago there were 3 JoAnn stores (plus two Hancocks and a half dozen quilt fabric stores). 15 years ago they closed the Joann in the middle which used to have the most garment fabric. Now there are two tired old stores, 1/4 to 1/3 the size of that store in Florida. 40% decor, 15% craft supplies, 20% fleece, 10% flannel, 5% quilting cotton, 5% polyester knit garment fabric & acrylic woven fabric, 5% trims and notions. And they don't even carry some items they used to have, like drawstring elastic. It is nowhere in the entire Joann system. And the yarn is just acrylic and a bit of cotton now. No wool. No sock yarn.
In Oklahoma, the nearest store to me is two hours away. When I was last there at the end of January, they had a great supply of quilting cotton including batiks. They did say they were getting things late. Their Christmas fabric order had just arrived. Unfortunately that store was hit by a tornado in April. It is the last thing in the mall to reopen...supposedly at the end of October. But the store was always clean and organized when I shopped there.
The next closest JoAnn to me is 2 hours away in the opposite direction and in another state. I don't remember much about that store, I have only been there once.
(My other options are a small part-time quilt shop with okay quilting cottons and polyester thread. I don't know why she doesn't carry cotton. 40 minutes away, in a third direction. And about 35 minutes away, in a fourth direction, is a Hobby Lobby. They used to have several kinds of thread but now only have Sewology, which my machine doesn't like.)
So if the JoAnn stores close, I will have to order zippers and thread online, and probably garment fabric, too.
Jen, Just watched this video. It's a really good video, and pretty par with what we are seeing at our JoAnn's (Houston, Tx suburbs). One thing I'd like to note is when you mentioned about how they put out the brand new stuff and right off the bat, there are also signs that have it marked down 40 - 50 percent off. I have noticed Hobby Lobby doing the same thing, and even a few clothing stores. I'm wondering if this is some new marketing strategy. My husband has worked in retail for over 30 years as a buyer. They don't mark down like that, but he has noticed in other retailers, this seems to be a new trend. Even when they have things marked down, you can bet they are still profiting, or at the very least, breaking even. Are they trying some psychological game on us, to see if we will buy it when we think we're getting a great bargain? Maybe. Also, you mentioned how they've already got the Christmas stuff out. Yes, that drove me nuts for years - but I've talked to a few local crafter friends who do all of the crafting fairs and they say they are glad that it's out early, because now they can buy it and have all their items ready in time for their craft sale events. So I guess from that standpoint, I can see there is a market for it. Sorry for the long comment - I just thought this video was very interesting and you said a LOT of stuff that I am thinking, too, and have wondered about.
I wish we had one this large. Well, our store has limited staff and is now closing at 6pm daily. 6!!! I don't know. Maybe because of staffing? Sad!
The JoAnns local to me is an hour away. The fine dress fabric stores are gone and the quilt shops are the only small shops surviving. And JoAnns no longer sells fine fabrics for clothing in my area. I went to look for fabric to recover my dining room chairs and only saw two that would even work.
This is a great store. I live in south west Florida and we have the smallest crappiest Joann. Never more than 2 hardworking employees. They finally got the AC fixed. Pattern area looks like a bomb went off there. More quilting cottons than anything else. Your store looks very nice.
Last 2 times I was in my JoAnn’s you have to ring doorbell at register to checkout. Only saw 1 employee.
My store chsnged it's hours. It's only open 10-6 . I hsve 2 choices in fabrics quilting cotton and fleece. I buy online becsuse they carry nothing i need and what they do hsve i csn get cheaper else where.
My JoAnn’s is small. It is dirty and disorganized. There is usually one checkout person and 2 other employees at the cut bar. You have to wait in line a long time. I went to buy some rayon challis and they didn’t have any.
I ended up going to hobby lobby and finding a nice rayon challis😊.
I agree… why do they sell all that weird stuff that has nothing to do with crafting and sewing. My store is a junk store. I can’t even walk down the fabric isles because there are so many bolts on the floor. One half of the fabric is fleece in my store… why?? I also looked for stretch charcoal denim and they didn’t have any.
They usually have an early sale on Christmas items because they are left over from last year. The new stuff will come out as they make room. The news and morning shows are saying buy early for Christmas as the item might not be there in Dec.
Speaking as a JOANN employee, this is definitely false. There's never anything left over from the year before in warehouses because they push it all out to stores - then as stores at the end of season, we're required to destroy everything and then throw it out so not even dumpster divers can get anything in decent condition. This is true of every department in the store also. If your store donates anything that went past discard, it's because that area is lucky and has a manager who cares enough to set it up in their free time. The early seasonal sales are fully scams and nothing is ever at regular price. It's just so you can't use your coupons that are typically better deals. The coupons are just lures to get you into the store. Then they put most items on 25-30% off so they're unusable.
That's one of the good stores. I went to my local Joans a couple days ago. Did an order online pick up in store deal, but couldn't help but have a walk around. It wasn't too bad they had some yarn they decided to display in the boxes it came in in the back, But I kinda like seeing large amounts of yarn that's all the same color and it looked ok.I saw some mandala cake yarn that was on sale but decided it wasn't on sale enough. I saw some cool Halloween candles but decided not to buy them, but i was confused they were already 30% off and Halloween isn't for another 3 weeks. I picked up my order and was pleased with the quality of the yarn even though it was "value" yarn.
Glad to see you made it past 1000 subs. I just subscribed today.
Welcome aboard! Thank you!
There are two JoAnn locations near me. Both about a 30 minute drive and both are very old and dirty and poorly stocked. As a result, I haven't been to them in awhile ... maybe they've been renovated since I was last there?
The Styrofoam foam heads are also for displays for masks or stores or retail stores
You may have been there one day after truck was received. That is normal. Same day that the truck is received and day after there are normally more staff to get it stocked but that also means those same staff are helping everywhere else. Was one of the full time staff (was the Freight supervisor at our local store) that was cut….and quick too…was given two days to decide and then was gone within a week. So sad to see Joanns head down so quickly. 😢
For me, the regular prices are double the price of many other retailers. I only buy items on sale or with a high value coupon. My local store holds onto clearance items for a long time. Their idea of clearance is the regular price of other retail outlets. An employee once told me that after a while they just “dispose” or “donate” all the clearance merchandise rather than give a potential customer a better price. I would have purchased a two year old planner if it was $2-5, but not for $18! I don’t really go there except for yarn purchases with a coupon.
At my Store in Kansas City look horrible inside because we don't have enough people to do everything. My manager seems to have something against LBGTQIA+ community. I'm set up for failure due to next week I work Sunday and Saturday. I also don't get paid a good wage. I don't hate the store and most of the people I work with, but when you get paid $12 an hour and being pulled in every direction. We have a ton of boxes unpacked, we have no custom framing, and there's way more shit that isn't craft based that it's super overwhelming. Corporate doesn't understand that pay needs to be better and that it's not much of a good store anymore.
My store is tiny versus that one. A few sewing machines on top of the binding display, etc. I was in there a couple of weeks ago during a week day. A few employees and a few customers. They were wearing the headsets so they could be called to the register, etc. Employees were friendly. Ours is mostly filled with quilting cotton.
The viking area has nothing to do with Joann. Their store rents from Joann. It's like a Subway renting from Walmart
Right, and their employees don't count towards Joann employees, either.
My JoAnn’s is similar to yours but way fewer employees. There is so much junk decor, and when I walked in to buy some specific items (I wanted some trims by the yrs), I noticed that their collection was greatly reduced from what they previously had carried. also, definitely not as much fabric as before, with the exception of a ton of fleece. It’s irritating, and I hardly ever see anything I want to buy, especially for apparel sewing. Whoever is doing the buying is definitely not doing a good job. So much junk!
What's going on with corporate Joann? My giant gripe in my local store is the cutting area. There will be two people working there and then two customers will have like 20 bolts of fabric each and the manager and other employees will come and go and chat with each other and no one helps at the cutting counter. I've easily waited more than 20 minutes many times. That said, I will be DEVASTATED if Joann goes out of business! We have a Michaels, but no other fabric stores in our whole state (excepting small quilt stores with a very limited range of fabrics and notions)
I love your investigation!! I recently emailed you with information on my local JoAnns. Your store appears to be larger but seems like a lot of empty space up front. The 2 employee situation is in the evenings usually . I’m not sure what it’s like during the day. I would think Saturday would be the best staffed. I would like to say that I work at Hobby Lobby and we are consistently staffed well. I’m pretty impressed with the way our store looks. And also our Christmas stuff starts off at 40% off and is currently 50% now until Christmas and people are buying it up fast. Since the price won’t change, and the selection is best now, we are selling tons. The fall stuff is 40% off. Again flying off the shelves. I think that’s just a retail tactic. I think spring stuff will be here in the next month or so. Since we don’t restock the holidays items, we’ll need to fill in the empty spots. Also when you see carts with different items in them, they are usually returns being returned to the sales floor. Also I think I told you I interviewed at Jo Ann’s a month ago. And at that point they told me that they got rid of their Inventory staff. So all those responsibilities fall on the floor staff and they are not allowed to work more than 1/2 hour before store opens or after close. So a lot of that needs to be done during the day. I pray that they don’t go out of business!! I love the selection of fabric!! Thanks for your update!!
The Joann's closest to me makes me depressed and I don't want to work on a project. I feel like an episode of Twilight Zone in the store. Hobby Lobby has less of what I want but at least the store is clean and there are several people in the store both employees and customers.
Our store in Fl has cut their hours to closing at 7pm M-S. Sunday 6. The fabric is the same over and over. Very little of new fabrics
Also the holiday stuff being on sale is normal. It is always like that. They go on sale the same time it goes out
Huskvarna Viking leases space in ETC stores and work for that company, so you can't really count them. Hours were ALWAYS a problem, there were never enough unless a district manager was slated to visit.
There was just a whole lot of freight on the floor which was a no-no when I did freight. Our truck day was Wednesday and we were supposed to have it done by Friday, which hardly ever happened, btw. Saturdays were always crushingly busy from the first part of Oct. thru Dec. so, to me, that store looked positively deserted!
Yes, the seasonal stuff seems to expand every year and it was always like that; I think they're just trying to keep up with Hobby Lobby. Christmas always comes out way early. Christmas fabric comes in around the middle of May! My least favorite seasonal item is those stinky cinnamon pine cones, they still give me hives (figuratively).
I used to call the checkout line the candy gauntlet, but it's really just an impulse buy zone (with some flex* thrown in) and yeah, it got crazier all the time.
Sounds like they've (maybe) gotten their sh#t together with the sports licensed fabrics; we used to get teams that had nothing to do with our area. It was always so frustrating; we have a bunch of sports teams in SoCal and customers were looking for Dodgers and USC, not OSU and Green Bay!
*flex is planogram space that's empty (usually waiting for product or a new planogram) that gets filled with overstock product. Planograms get totally re-done every year (not at the same time, they're staggered, thank goodness!) and the old stuff has to sell through enough before the new planogram gets done.
Fabric is for quilting tons of options like dresses or seasonal stuff
Sad state of affairs@Joann.They have never been able to figure out the Labor model for their stores.Sewing is very labor intensive and accuracy in measuring.The Labor it takes to properly merchandise seasonal and floral,if not allocated,you get what your video shows,which then takes away from the fabric presentation.
JAS would benefit from allowing Hibby Lobby to have the seasonal/floral piece of the business(they do it right) and focus on the sewing piece which carries tremendous margin and the store footprint (square feet) would not be necessary and with looming chapter 11 it would give an oppty to shutter oversized lications and develop a smaller "sewcentric" store footprint.
you’re not wrong but there’s way more to the story. Just dig deeper than the brick and mortar part of it. (Quarterly reports and stocks etc)
Ndr so I can’t say more than that I’m sure.
You can film in the store - but ty for blurring the employee faces 👍
The back room is full of product I’m betting so much so that they had to put it out on the floor. It happened to my local store too bc cut hours to work freight & no longer have a crew just for that.
9-10 employees on shift in a dead mega store is shocking
Locally, lucky to have 3 at one time.
Good luck to the employees and can’t wait to see an update on this after new fiscal year Feb 2024
Our closest store is 1 hr away in Augusta Georgia. It has been a filthy emptied shelf mess for years. The employees don't sew. They make a mess of cutting fabric. Only 1 person cutting. They have 6 registers but never more than 1 cashier.
Halloween is a big deal. All stores (except Hobby Lobby) sell Halloween decor.
Christmas is out in all our shops in S.C. After Thanksgiving, you can't find anything you need for Christmas. They put Valentines Day out in December.
It stinks!!!!
Joann's needs to get it together. They are going downhill fast. My local Janns is scarce on employees, it is a total mess, bare shelves stuff unpacked in boxes same boxes for weeks. Carry more yarn, but no needles, hooks etc anymore. Its starting to look like an overpriced dollar store rather than a craft store. They are pushing online orders either store pick up or ship. If you order multiple items for pick up and one thing is not available They cancel entire order. I missed out on expiring deals because of that. AND MOST OF ALL YOU CANT MATCH COLORS AND FEEL TEXTURES ON LINE! Percent off total purchase now only for online. If you get multiple items for shipping your items trickle in over weeks separately, like picked from various stores rather than a warehouse.
My new Joann's is about 5 weeks old. The setup is similar to the one in this video. In general I am very happy with it, but at times there are not enough cashiers. A couple of weeks ago they had NO BAGS for almost a week. I thought that it was totally unacceptable😢
I see at most 2 to 3 employees in my Joannes. It’s impossible to get help and there’s usually only one person at the checkout.
Disheartening. I've been getting that stitch itch lately, & Joann has always been the most reliable store in the area before online ordering. My store looked the same since the last time I was there, & that was some time ago. I was hoping to see more variety in the doll/bear building area. I got these nice black with blue eyes for this bear I'm going to build. The back of the store had some disheveled shelves. Anywho, it's a shame that consumerism is taking over. Instead of the confidence that comes with making stuff with your own hands.
Wow, 9 employees? I am shocked. The store in my area, same size as this, there are only 3 workers at any one time. One mans cut table and does online orders. The cut table shuts down when they are pulling online orders. The second one mans the registers and tries to do other assigned tasks so there is a wait to get that employee back to the register. The 3rd person is the manager or a key person. That’s it. There is the Husqvarna Viking Gallery employee and in this store they are the ones responsible to demo the Ditto stuff.
Halloween stuff is a big sell! The Styrofoam heads are very popular and sell out at my store. If Christmas items aren't out early customers complain like crazy.
Our store looks like it is about ready to close.
Bathroom? You need a secret code to get in. Not good for the elderly when you have to track down a clerk to get a code and hope you don't urinate on yourself til you get back to the bathroom!! Half of the lights are either out or not operating. Bathroom filthy. The roof leaks, and there are plastic bins everywhere when it rains. There are machines that pull the hot air down from their warehouse ceilings and spew out cooler air. So Cal?? It's freaking hot, sometimes into November!!
Their stock closed at 58 cents . They're done. Buy while you can.
girl...this is the SAME stuff the store has been selling for YEARS....10-15-20 years, it's NOTHING new....
they sell like they are oriental trading co xD i mean.. maybe thats whats going on, higher ups cutting deals on bulk purchases that include a bunch of crap. Hmmm.. everything boxed up and an industrial fan? What if something happened, like a water leak or something.
Special occasion fabric should never be allowed to become disordered, on sale or not. Display it right beside the cutting counter so your people can keep it neat. Appears to be waay to much micromanagement from corporate.
honesty I have not witnessed any of the issues you are describing at my local JoAnn's here in WI other than they need employees, which is a problem in every business. As for the holiday/seasonal items I have bought some but honestly only when it's on clearance. normal costs on those items always too high. But so is Hobby Lobby. But then again us Wisconsinites are know for being frugal and love a good bargain. The online fabric retailers have really hurt the craft industry.
I live near corporate JoAnns and I simply stopped going there. It is dirty and too expensive now. It seems other locations are much better than the corporate store is. The prices have been getting way too high regardless of the sales or coupons. I like Hobby Lobby more, but since they dont carry Halloween, you have to shop there or Michael's, and I would rater go to Michael's.
I did have a question for you. I saw in one of your videos, you had a new mic and said was a good one off Amazon. I was about to look into desk top mics. And wanted to ask which one you have. If you don't mind sharing
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How many employees could actually sew? Did you ask any basic question about fabric such as “where is the Poplin or Twill. Or, do you have Corduroy? Do you have and bridal fabrics? Do you carry Organza? Do you have flat back Satin? Huh? You have to DIG through interfacing. Or buy a tiny package. And, if you dare to want to buy interfacing or muslin by the bolt…they actually unwrap the sealed plastic around the bolt and want to measure it and give you a jumbled pile! I have literally had to stop them, point out it has never been opened and show them where the sticker is that tells them how much fabric is on the bolt!
I actually had one of their ‘managers’ tell me they had to open a sealed bolt of fabric and measure it. I, because I was annoyed, let them open it, measure it, and wad it up…then told them I have changed my mind and I no longer wanted that wad of fabric. Left the store. Made sure I got the managers name and let her know when I was leaving that she probably needed to go back and help the snot employee (and snot manager) rewind the fabric back on the bolt! No purchase today and I would be contacting corporate.
Who knows what happened but when the sealed bolt says 15 yds, you would think 🤔 that they would have a clue. Bet neither one of them knew how to sew! Agh! It sucks when you have your own Fifedom and some old lady points you back at yourself!
My local JoAnns is awful. The employees are always nice, but the store itself is always a mess, empty shelves, unopened/open boxes cluttered in all the isles. The departments are a total disaster. You walk in and you would think this is a store in a third world country. Forget about using their toilet. A truck stop toilet is way cleaner than theirs. I stopped shopping there some years back, now I only go for pattern sales, but even them they never have the new selections. Very annoying. I wish they would go back to just selling fabrics and notions, period. Management is NOT listening to shoppers. They send silly questionnaires after visits which have silly questions. Just sad.
Well they keep dust off the floral
Not sure how it is where you live, but in my area, halloween is huge! You can't have too much. People try to outdo each other every year. Not to mention the haunted houses and haunted forests. My son is an actor at one, and he is always creating new props. Our real complaint is you can't find halloween stuff all year long when you're working on next year's stuff in March..lol
Seems like the JoAnn in my town hasn't gotten anything new in 6 years. Same old tired stuff. Pretty boring these days.
People hosting parties with big families will decorate or buy after to save for next year 😂😂😂