Day late and a dollar short? Spark Craft is closing.

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

I was signed up for a class at Spark Craft, on Mass Ave just outside of Davis, in December, but, just got an email from the instructor there that the business is closing on November 30th or before. There is apparently a contest to win the business, but, it seems their website is already down.

This business was in Davis for some time before it moved to Mass Ave; I'm sorry they don't seem to have enough business to stay there.

Comments

[emcicle.livejournal.com]

bummer!

I admit I didn't buy too much from them, as I have little time for knitting these days, but I loved that they existed just down the road, and always meant to attend a stitch and bitch ....

anyone know more details?

[contradictacat.livejournal.com]

That is kind of sad, but I can understand why they're closing- they're not in a very good location and there are better, more single-focused craft shops close by- Mind's Eye Yarn and Wolcott's for yarn, Beadworks for beads/jewelry, and the various papercraft stores for scrapbooking. So, sad it'll be gone, but I won't miss it.

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

I always really liked their papercraft stock. I liked it better when they had the big punches around to use in the store, but those have been gone for a while.

[ifotismeni]

oh man! i am really sad to hear this :(

[lissie930.livejournal.com]

It is a bummer, but I sort of have to agree. I can only speak to the fiber craft side, but it never really felt like they had enough of a stock to cater to the LYS crowd.

[contradictacat.livejournal.com]

Yeah, and especially with MEY and Wolcott's nearby. IIRC, the only yarn they had a lot of that I didn't see as much in other places was Manos, but that's not hard to find.

[ron_newman]

what is LYS?

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

Local Yarn Store.

website is back up

[ron_newman]

If it was down, it's up again right now.

New Hours as of November 18:
Tuesday - Friday, 4:30-8:30
Saturday, 10:00-5:00
Sunday, 12:00 - 5:00

and

Spark Craft Studios will be closing as of November 30, 2008

Thank you for your business!

I actually would have expected that a 'worsening' economy would be good for a do-it-yourself craft kind of place. Guess not.

Essay Contest, to Win Spark Craft Studios

[ron_newman]

The store is yours for $300, if you win
Deadline for entries is Wednesday, November 26

Re: website is back up

[syntheticnature.livejournal.com]

For knitting and sewing anyway, you spend more on the materials than you would spend on a finished garment, so it's a luxury.

Re: website is back up

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

You definitely do for cards, though I enjoy making them anyway.

Re: website is back up

[haptotrope.livejournal.com]

I think it was a poor-ish business model. There was little "love of the craft" that was conveyed any time I went in there. And craft/yarn shops go under all the time...esp. since they got in right when knitting and crafting was derigeur -- and now its leveling off.

[lizzielizzie.livejournal.com]

That's....very interesting. If I had the spare capital, I'd probably enter the contest and take over the business.

Re: Essay Contest, to Win Spark Craft Studios

[kennygster.livejournal.com]

wow, "at least 500 people" x $300 = $150,000.

Re: Essay Contest, to Win Spark Craft Studios

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

Enough money to make it worth giving it away.

[badseed1980.livejournal.com]

Are they selling off yarns for cheap? It's a hell of a lot easier for me to get there for cheap yarn than to Fabric Place.

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

I hate to ask, but Fabric Place in Woburn? didn't that go out of business a couple months ago? Friends were talking about going there to stock up at the time.

[tisana.livejournal.com]

I think it's gone, but it's pretty recent. The Framingham location is still open and selling off stock.

[librarybrandy.livejournal.com]

Can't speak to the Framingham location, but Woburn is technically still open and selling stock... but when I was there Thursday night, they were down to about 2 mostly-full shelves of fabric on bolts, about the same amount of upholstery fabric, and a couple of books of upholstery fabric samples. On the bright side, it's all 75% off and the sample books are a buck apiece, so if that's the sort of thing you need, hie thee to Fabric Place.

I'm now in the market for a new fabric store.

[badseed1980.livejournal.com]

Woburn and Framingham, yeah. They're still working on selling off inventory. It might end this week or something, but I've gotten e-mails from them recently.

Re: Essay Contest, to Win Spark Craft Studios

[laryu.livejournal.com]

Or: enough money to pay off creditors, avoid filing for bankruptcy, and give the business away unencumbered.

Re: Essay Contest, to Win Spark Craft Studios

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

Sure. That's one way to do it, anyway.

[theodosia.livejournal.com]

So sorry to hear about it -- I'd stop by and buy stuff when they were in Davis, but I could see that it was a problematic location.

Unfortunately with the credit crunch, even small businesses that are well -plan ned and -run can lose vital funding when they have to replace stock or deal with unexpected expenses.

[magid.livejournal.com]

Looks like the Woburn location's last day was yesterday (http://www.fabricplace.com/FabricPlaceCurrent/FpGOB.jpg)...

Re: Essay Contest, to Win Spark Craft Studios

[m00n.livejournal.com]

Given that it seems like my $300 should give me some kind of a stake in the business...

[koshmom.livejournal.com]

If they recently moved, moving can really take a bite out of a business. Sometimes, there's just so much debt involved in the moving process (renovating the new place prior to moving in, buying new shelves, etc) that a store just can't recover.

Re: website is back up

[turil.livejournal.com]

I'll second the lack of love there. They seemed more interested in looking good than in feeling good. :-)

Plus, they were really anti-kid, which probably turned off a lot of potential customers who have or are kids...

[turil.livejournal.com]

I was just talking to a women yesterday who was complaining about Spark, and I guess I'm not too surprised that they didn't get enough business. I wouldn't shop there, for a number of reasons, and I'm a craftaholic...

[firepail.livejournal.com]

Yep. I am a craft junkie and would not recommend going there. Their stock was very limited, there prices were high, and their customer service was lacking. They would have been better off selling all possible supplies for one craft--like knitting, or selling very basic supplies for a broad range of crafts and have classes that involved kids. Maybe work something out with StellaBella to tie into their mom-mob. The high-end knitting supplies, some sewing things, a few rubber stamps, and beads didn't make sense with the other knitting stores, Paper Source, Beadworks, etc. being close by.

Re: Essay Contest, to Win Spark Craft Studios

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

Well, it looked like if they didn't make the 500 minimum you got most of it back, and otherwise it was the contest entry fee.

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

I feel like it was at least a couple years back, but I don't love this location.

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

Well, now you won't have to?

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

I liked a lot of their paper crafting things, but after they got rid of the big punches I lost some incentive to go. I hate to be negative, I loved the idea of the space.

Re: website is back up

[syntheticnature.livejournal.com]

Anti-kid is probably not so good when you're right next to Stellabella Toys.

Re: Essay Contest, to Win Spark Craft Studios

[m00n.livejournal.com]

I know, but that's a pretty high entry fee considering the odds are 499 to 1 against and you don't get anything at all if you lose (and the store stays in business, that is)

[firepail.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's sad to see a "little guy", well "gal", not last, but my experience wasn't very positive when I tried to be their customer. I had hoped that they would be a great place to go so I wouldn't have to walk as far as Paper Source or take the bus to Play Time to get what I needed.

But maybe a new owner will give it the twist it needs to be something great?

not kid friendly

[kalimba21.livejournal.com]

I second that comment. When they first opened in Davis, I was so excited to come in with my son, who was 5 at the time and loved this kind of stuff. They let us play around with the rubber stamps, but, when we made our purchase and I asked about children's workshops, I was told that their vision was for moms to go there to get away from kids. Hmpph. I never went back after that.

Re: not kid friendly

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

Well, it matters very little now as by the end of the week they will be out of business. I love kid free spaces, myself.