The winning bidder of the bankruptcy auction was a partnership of Great American Group and some of the lenders. They bought the assets of Joann with the intent of liquidation rather keeping it as a going concern. The bankruptcy court will approve/disapprove of the sale on February 26th. This means all 800+ stores will most likely close on or before May 31, 2025. FYI, Great American is the same group that liquidated Hancock Fabrics almost 10 years ago.

The Hancock’s closures didn’t bother me as much as the closure of Joann does. I have a personal history with Joann. Cloth World, the fabric store I grew up with, was bought by Joann in 1994. Shortly after, I helped reset one of the Gwinnett Cloth World stores to the new Joann format. As we moved around the country with hubby’s job, finding the local Joann store in our new town was the same priority as finding the nearest library. I am a librarian, after all.

With the closing of Joann, crafters have lost a major option in where to buy supplies. In some areas, Joann is the only fabric/craft store for miles around. Even in markets served by Amazon, Hobby Lobby, Michael’s and Wal-Mart, some crafters refuse to shop any and all of these stores for various reasons. Besides, Joann is open on Sundays and allows Sadie to shop with me. The teacher discount and sales meant this teacher could afford to do craft projects with her students without breaking the bank.

Practical me has been surveying my fabric and notion stash to see if there’s anything I need to stock up on should I find a great price during the closing sales. Honestly, I don’t need a thing at the moment. Should I need more Pellon SF-101 interfacing for a t-shirt quilt currently in the queue, I have other ways to get it. Hobby Lobby usually runs a 40% off fabric promotion every 2-3 weeks. Today, I learned that interfacing by the yard is included in that promotion. Bonus? Hobby Lobby is much closer to home, too!

Fortunately, we still have options to source materials our creative endeavors. It’ll be an adjustment to figure out where’s the best place to get certain things from now on, but I’ll survive. Something will eventually come to the marketplace to fill the void left by the closure of Joann stores.