First BAZZILL, and now this! Yep, I heard from my ever-reliable 2Peas girlz that Michaels is now carrying a limited stock of the new Basic Grey. You can read about it HERE. Apparently, they will carry paper pads of Urban Prairie and Granola. I’d say the majority of the gals who posted, especially those who love to support their LSS’s, were a bit dismayed at this development. Like, why should Michaels get the new BG before the LSS’s even have it? Why were LSS owners apparently NOT told at CHA that Michaels would have these 2 lines? Kelly Goree from Basic Grey responded like this:
“…I was just writing to let you know that out of our recent release, M’s is only going to be carrying the UP and Granola and only in paper packs. This is an exclusive to them item and can only be found in that format there. However, they will NOT be getting any of the collection packs, chipboard, brads, etc. that coordinate with these lines.
Please know that UP and Granola are both slated to ship very soon so all the goodies, complete with all the extras should be showing up in your LSS very soon.”
I’m not sure how I feel about it. I’ve always been a huge LSS supporter, but I shop at Mike’s a lot merely because that’s all I have access to where I live. We have no Joann’s or Archivers or Hobby Lobby. All my close-by LSS’s have closed; the remaining one is 45 minutes away and it’s hard to get there much. But when I do, I fully support them, LOL! So I’m torn. I’m excited that ANY Basic Grey is at Michaels {!!!!!!}. But I’m sad that LSS’s are getting it AFTER Michaels did and that they apparently weren’t told this would happen when they placed their CHA orders. Was the info purposely withheld? I dunno. But as you can read in the 2Peas post, it sure puts the LSS owners in an awkward and probably costly position. If “one of our own” (i.e. Basic Grey) can’t support our LSS’s, who will? Maybe big companies like BG see the writing on the wall…the demise of most LSS’s and only selling to BBS’s and online stores? I guess I’d rather have some BG somewhere, than have them go out of business because the few LSS’s that are left aren’t buying enough product to keep them afloat. Not blaming the LSS’s in ANY way…it’s just the economy, the downward trend, and what THEY can afford to stock right now.
So, Basic Grey at Mike’s…it’s a bittersweet thang, ain’t it? What are your thoughts on the issue?
7 Comments
I don’t have any LSS around except for a cord camera which is a 30 mins away. Hobby Lobby and Pat Catan’s carries BG I guess Michaels would be the next step but at the same time I feel for the LSS owners because they can’t get a lot of products first because they don’t sell the volume the larger store do. I guess it’s bittersweet for me too.
The sad news is the LSS don’t have the “other” inventory to carry them throught these hard times like the craft stores do. I am shocked that the manufacturers are not supporting the LSS stores like they should – it wouldn’t be a surprise to see LSS buyers pick other manufacturers to sell – knowing they can’t compete with the bigbox stores. I feel for both the manufacturer who needs the sales and the LSS that are struggling so much. I really do feel if the manufacturers would support the independant stores more, they would see their sales increase. Just my opinion though. :)
I thought BG was already at box stores? I got some at AC Moore and also at Pat Catans, which is like a Mike’s but only in PA & Ohio (maybe other places)… my LSS doesn’t carry BG. I get BG when I go to the LSS that is 60 miles away. I’m not sure how I feel… I don’t think all LSS’s go out of business because of box stores, I think a lot of it is inventory, or the way they treat their customers…. stuff like that…
I wonder if it will be the same quality. I know some of the other lines sold there are lesser quality than what is sold at the Lss.
Are these regional developments? My Mike’s doesn’t even carry Bazzill!
I totally agree with Heather, too. I’d be concerned about quality – I’m curious to see if the paper is the same as you would get at the LSS.
I hear what you’re saying about being torn. I’m in the same boat as you, with only one LSS within about 15 miles, and a very mediocre Michaels within 2 miles of me. But even as close as that, I’d rather shop online. You can’t beat the convenience, and with the cost of gas and the hassles of getting in/out of the hot HOT car with little ones , I don’t mind paying shipping!
I was really surprised to see BG at my local Michael’s. My LSS is really far, even by orlando standards. Someone commented asking about quality, its the same paper you’d get at your LSS, I compared it to one I purchased somewhere else. My local store is also carrying S-E-I and Me & My Big Ideas. It was in a separate section labeled “Designer Scrapbooking”. I asked the store manager if all the stores were getting it and he said they should, it actually arrived earlier than anticipated to his store and add that some stores haven’t even gotten their Bazzill yet which launched a few months ago at Michaels.