Post by scrapnnana on Jul 2, 2015 12:45:50 GMT
I think that Michael's may be focusing more on the Cricut Explore and the Silhouette, although last time I stopped by a week or two ago, they still had a few manual dies. Not a lot, though.
I haven't been to any of the other craft stores in awhile (JoAnn's, AC Moore, or Hobby Lobby). However, at Scrapbook Expo, at least one of the vendors had newer Spellbinder releases. Yes, Spellbinders has changed their packaging. I don't think they would have gone to that expense if they were a dying business.
Many people shop online now, rather than at the big box stores. Let's face it: the big box stores change their offerings only about once or twice a year, so once you have bought what they have that is worth buying, you shop online or find another source.
I never used to shop online. Now that the last LSS here has been closed for awhile, I do buy things online that I can't get locally. I have mostly been buying Spellbinder and Heartfelt Creations dies. Very, very few of them seem to be discounted online, and the few that are discounted seem to be older ones.
One other thought I had was that the summer craft show wasn't that long ago, when new releases are shown to the business owners. It may be that Michael's is getting rid of old stock to make way for new dies coming in. Or not. Even if Michael's and the other big box stores don't carry dies anymore, dies are available online and at conventions.
I've bought quite a few dies lately, NOT because I was afraid they wouldn't be available anymore, but because for the first time in a long time, I was seeing dies that I really wanted and was willing to shell out the money for. New dies have been released relatively recently. Just because Michael's and other big box stores are changing what they carry, does not mean the die world is disappearing. Seriously, the big box stores never offered that much, anyway. I have always found better dies and far more selection at conventions.
I haven't been to any of the other craft stores in awhile (JoAnn's, AC Moore, or Hobby Lobby). However, at Scrapbook Expo, at least one of the vendors had newer Spellbinder releases. Yes, Spellbinders has changed their packaging. I don't think they would have gone to that expense if they were a dying business.
Many people shop online now, rather than at the big box stores. Let's face it: the big box stores change their offerings only about once or twice a year, so once you have bought what they have that is worth buying, you shop online or find another source.
I never used to shop online. Now that the last LSS here has been closed for awhile, I do buy things online that I can't get locally. I have mostly been buying Spellbinder and Heartfelt Creations dies. Very, very few of them seem to be discounted online, and the few that are discounted seem to be older ones.
One other thought I had was that the summer craft show wasn't that long ago, when new releases are shown to the business owners. It may be that Michael's is getting rid of old stock to make way for new dies coming in. Or not. Even if Michael's and the other big box stores don't carry dies anymore, dies are available online and at conventions.
I've bought quite a few dies lately, NOT because I was afraid they wouldn't be available anymore, but because for the first time in a long time, I was seeing dies that I really wanted and was willing to shell out the money for. New dies have been released relatively recently. Just because Michael's and other big box stores are changing what they carry, does not mean the die world is disappearing. Seriously, the big box stores never offered that much, anyway. I have always found better dies and far more selection at conventions.
. I am really out of the loop about manual dies. 
