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Post by anniefb on Sept 5, 2015 19:35:42 GMT
More so than overstocks, customers in Canada, Australia and New Zealand (huge scrappers and crafters) are being hit hard with their plummeting currencies. I assume many of them have halted or cut back their spending in the U.S. regardless of how they feel about SC or shipping fees. Canada is also undergoing a very painful period of massive layoffs right now as crude oil prices continue to dip. SC will be alright, though, because the euro is stable and the pound is very good right now (our British friends are big scrappers). They also get a portion of Ali, ABM, etc., and Ali's products are as strong-selling as ever. What will be truly interesting is what happens at the end of the year. That’s when thousands of customers will decide whether they’ll commit to new terms or not. I’m suspecting that diversifying (the Saldana and Brown partnerships) was done as a cushion to a possible fall in subs. Yep, the NZ$ has gone from buying about 85 US cents when I started my first sub last year to 63 cents as of yesterday. This makes a huge difference to what I can buy, not just from SC but overall. However, if I was absolutely satisfied with SC, I'd consider diverting money from elsewhere in the budget to keep one sub going after December. My main issue is with the new commitment/cancellation policy, the (lesser) amount of product I now get for each dollar I spend and the way in which the kits are changed without warning. I just can't commit to that kind of deal, especially when there are warnings the kiwi dollar may go lower  |
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Post by goldenblind221 on Sept 5, 2015 22:26:19 GMT
Hi! I'm foucaultgirl both here and at SC. I am waffling on if I want to cancel right now or wait until December to cancel my subs at SC. I *do* like their classes, generally (although the content seems MUCH less detailed this year than it was last year), and I generally love their products. I've been sporadically active on the boards since 2009, and have been a subscriber since 2010. I have found immense delight in and inspiration from the DT and community at Studio Calico. However, as both the kit contents and DT members seem to dwindle while the regulations about when products will be available grow more Byzantine and the penalties/terms of subscription become ore draconian, I feel that it's probably time for me to move on. Hopefully this thread will give me the push to go ahead and cancel. hi! Nice to see you over here.  |
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Post by goldenblind221 on Sept 5, 2015 22:33:48 GMT
The more I've been thinking about it, really contemplating good and hard, the more I realize how I like the SC kits less and less. FOMO is a really big sales tool for them. Things I was afraid of missing out on I've come to realize that I don't even like as much as I thought I would. Stamp sets, exclusive papers, small embellishments, they sit in my stash unused because it's not REALLY my style. It was just hyped up, and I got swept up in the frenzy. I loved the mix of products in the beginning, exclusives that COMPLEMENTED the rest of the kit. What they've put out recently just hasn't been my style. Too big, too graphic, too repetitive. It's definitely time to switch to something new and refreshing.
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cbscrapper
Pearl Clutcher
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Post by cbscrapper on Sept 6, 2015 0:09:39 GMT
The more I've been thinking about it, really contemplating good and hard, the more I realize how I like the SC kits less and less. FOMO is a really big sales tool for them. Things I was afraid of missing out on I've come to realize that I don't even like as much as I thought I would. Stamp sets, exclusive papers, small embellishments, they sit in my stash unused because it's not REALLY my style. It was just hyped up, and I got swept up in the frenzy. I loved the mix of products in the beginning, exclusives that COMPLEMENTED the rest of the kit. What they've put out recently just hasn't been my style. Too big, too graphic, too repetitive. It's definitely time to switch to something new and refreshing. ^^^^Yes, this exactly. With the "preview" sale allowing viewing (sort of) and purchase of the add-ons, I find my frenzy and FOMO is less. Plus I haven't really liked the past two kits very much. I LOVED Odyssey and Galileo was pretty good, but lately not so much. |
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Post by foucaultgirl on Sept 6, 2015 1:47:51 GMT
I agree about not taking more classes. I am currently in one that a dt teaches a mini album. There are a couple of videos to watch. No printable 'lessons' and the message board is boring. Im glad I didn't pay much for it. Is that the Stephanie Bryant mini album class? I also found it extremely underwhelming. She seems like a lovely person, and there are elements of her style I might like to emulate, but I HATE the video-heavy format of the class. Something about having a PDF with photos I can zoom in on is far more helpful to me. |
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Post by foucaultgirl on Sept 6, 2015 1:58:39 GMT
Hi! I'm foucaultgirl both here and at SC. I am waffling on if I want to cancel right now or wait until December to cancel my subs at SC. I *do* like their classes, generally (although the content seems MUCH less detailed this year than it was last year), and I generally love their products. I've been sporadically active on the boards since 2009, and have been a subscriber since 2010. I have found immense delight in and inspiration from the DT and community at Studio Calico. However, as both the kit contents and DT members seem to dwindle while the regulations about when products will be available grow more Byzantine and the penalties/terms of subscription become ore draconian, I feel that it's probably time for me to move on. Hopefully this thread will give me the push to go ahead and cancel. hi! Nice to see you over here. Nice to see you here, too! Although I wish it were under happier circumstances! (But it is reassuring to see that people I consider really positive and reasonable having the same qualms I'm having about SC - at least I know I'm not just being a diva!  ?) |
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Post by Skellinton on Sept 6, 2015 4:52:59 GMT
I won't ever sub to them again, but when they have a good deal for something I really want I will buy. I will feel icky for giving April my hard earned money, because I think she is not a nice person and she is seriously lacking in self awareness and I hate SC customer service, but it isn't like she is drowning kittens in her spare time, so I will shop there when the sales are right. This time I did buy one of the add ons I originally wanted but realized was overpriced since it was now half off and the Amelia Embellishment bundle that was half off because with that great stamp set it was worth it. I also had some left over calico points, so that was nice.
I wish they had been more aware of what made them successful in the first place and stuck with that. For now I am super excited about my FF kit this month and getting my first two Scraptastic kits!
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Post by anniefb on Sept 6, 2015 5:57:20 GMT
I won't ever sub to them again, but when they have a good deal for something I really want I will buy. I will feel icky for giving April my hard earned money, because I think she is not a nice person and she is seriously lacking in self awareness and I hate SC customer service, but it isn't like she is drowning kittens in her spare time, so I will shop there when the sales are right. This time I did buy one of the add ons I originally wanted but realized was overpriced since it was now half off and the Amelia Embellishment bundle that was half off because with that great stamp set it was worth it. I also had some left over calico points, so that was nice. I wish they had been more aware of what made them successful in the first place and stuck with that. For now I am super excited about my FF kit this month and getting my first two Scraptastic kits! Let us know what you think of Scraptastic @skellington  |
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Post by goldenblind221 on Sept 6, 2015 7:58:14 GMT
hi! Nice to see you over here. Nice to see you here, too! Although I wish it were under happier circumstances! (But it is reassuring to see that people I consider really positive and reasonable having the same qualms I'm having about SC - at least I know I'm not just being a diva! ?) not remotely diva-like. It's been rough over there. |
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Post by saralovesducks on Sept 6, 2015 10:40:19 GMT
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Post by pelirroja on Sept 6, 2015 14:53:30 GMT
For anyone who feels like they caved in buying sale goods from SC, forgive yourself and move on. As you move away from SC, you will be amazed to find many of their so-called "exclusives" at places such as Tuesday Morning and Marshall's and TJMaxx. And as far as SC "exclusives" go, you will discover that American Crafts often makes the SC exclusives with the same design in different colors for their other brands and lines. The longer you stay away, the easier it will become (just like a breakup with a misbehaving boyfriend).
I have a feeling that April really needed the former CFO's guidance since things seem to have gone seriously awry since his passing. I wish her well but I certainly don't give her any of my hard-earned $ since I can buy all the SC I want at TM for a substantial discount.
And to all the SC refugees who have become 2Ps RefuPeas, I'm so very glad you've joined us! You all have brought so much to our community!
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Post by icequeen on Sept 6, 2015 15:48:12 GMT
For anyone who feels like they caved in buying sale goods from SC, forgive yourself and move on. As you move away from SC, you will be amazed to find many of their so-called "exclusives" at places such as Tuesday Morning and Marshall's and TJMaxx. And as far as SC "exclusives" go, you will discover that American Crafts often makes the SC exclusives with the same design in different colors for their other brands and lines. The longer you stay away, the easier it will become (just like a breakup with a misbehaving boyfriend). I have a feeling that April really needed the former CFO's guidance since things seem to have gone seriously awry since his passing. I wish her well but I certainly don't give her any of my hard-earned $ since I can buy all the SC I want at TM for a substantial discount. And to all the SC refugees who have become 2Ps RefuPeas, I'm so very glad you've joined us! You all have brought so much to our community! Thank you. It's amazing how homey it feels here knowing that members respect a difference of opinions and posts won't be deleted or locked because Big Brother doesn't like them. I'm also thankful that posts aren't over the top, mean and venom-filled either. You're so right about the ease of finding exclusives. The longer I did PL (was a carmaker and traditional scrapper before), the more I realized that a lot of my favourite designers sell their products digitally. Since discovering The Lilypad and learning who was behind the SC kit cards I loved, it's been easy to get the same cards outside of an SC kit. And it feels good to know that the designers are probably getting more of a cut for their hard work. |
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lizacreates
Pearl Clutcher
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Post by lizacreates on Sept 6, 2015 17:46:33 GMT
I have a feeling that April really needed the former CFO's guidance since things seem to have gone seriously awry since his passing. I wish her well but I certainly don't give her any of my hard-earned $ since I can buy all the SC I want at TM for a substantial discount. That’s an interesting viewpoint. I actually guessed the opposite: that she’s been executing his advice (may he rest in peace). It’s fairly common for a company with a growth strategy to rid itself of low-margin and/or high-maintenance customers. Moves like that are usually spurred by CFOs. Of course, this doesn’t sit well with the scrapbooking community but it’s a reality for many businesses. Int’l was the first likely target for divesting, although the execution was terribly messy. I thought all the moves they’ve made thus far are working toward the direction of encouraging the sub-and-shut-up crowd. I agree about TM - love the discounts. |
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kaybree
Full Member
Posts: 248
Jul 23, 2015 10:38:23 GMT
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Post by kaybree on Sept 6, 2015 18:04:45 GMT
I wish I had more access to those stores in Canada! Although they have built a huge Marshall's down the road from where I work; it's the first one in my city. I'm excited to check it out when it opens next week.
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Post by gigi333 on Sept 6, 2015 18:07:54 GMT
I don't know if she wants rid of internationals cause they could just say we don't so international business
And the new shipping is way way cheaper for international it's actually the Americans who were getting free shipping paying more, my sb kit was 17.99 shipping and every item I bought had handling fees. Now my sb kits shipping is a 3 dollar shipping and handling fee and I don't pay any more handling fees on other items
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Post by anniefb on Sept 6, 2015 20:44:02 GMT
I don't know if she wants rid of internationals cause they could just say we don't so international business And the new shipping is way way cheaper for international it's actually the Americans who were getting free shipping paying more, my sb kit was 17.99 shipping and every item I bought had handling fees. Now my sb kits shipping is a 3 dollar shipping and handling fee and I don't pay any more handling fees on other items Yes, although some of the kit price is now covering shipping which is why the kits are having less and less product. |
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Post by icequeen on Sept 6, 2015 20:50:00 GMT
gigi333, I'm not sure what you mean. Now, internationals pay $3 s&h per kit but any additional items are now charged by weight for shipping. My shipping costs have actually increased under this pricing structure by the time I add the shipping, handling, and bundled items shipping costs all together. The only benefit is to choose my shipping speed. kaybree, try checking out HomeSense for SC products. I've had luck there.
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lizacreates
Pearl Clutcher
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Post by lizacreates on Sept 6, 2015 21:37:27 GMT
I must have misunderstood something along the way. Isn't the $3 just handling & nothing else? The shipping cost has been built-in to the kit price and that's why the base price increased.
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Post by icequeen on Sept 6, 2015 22:22:33 GMT
I must have misunderstood something along the way. Isn't the $3 just handling & nothing else? The shipping cost has been built-in to the kit price and that's why the base price increased. That was my understanding. Shipping included in the kit for everyone. Internationals pay $3 handling per kit. Any bundled items are charged shipping based on weight and chosen shipping speed. The only freebies are the preview/presage discounted items. |
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Chinagirl828
Drama Llama
Melbourne, Australia
Posts: 6,688
Jun 28, 2014 6:28:53 GMT
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Post by Chinagirl828 on Sept 6, 2015 23:40:43 GMT
And to all the SC refugees who have become 2Ps RefuPeas, I'm so very glad you've joined us! You all have brought so much to our community! This times 1000! Like many other refupeas I have never subscribed to SC but I've followed this drama with interest. I'm glad you have joined us and are actively participating in the community. |
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Post by mom on Sept 7, 2015 2:48:17 GMT
I agree about not taking more classes. I am currently in one that a dt teaches a mini album. There are a couple of videos to watch. No printable 'lessons' and the message board is boring. Im glad I didn't pay much for it. Is that the Stephanie Bryant mini album class? I also found it extremely underwhelming. She seems like a lovely person, and there are elements of her style I might like to emulate, but I HATE the video-heavy format of the class. Something about having a PDF with photos I can zoom in on is far more helpful to me. yes! It is her class. I like her as an individual, but this class really disappointed me in the lack of material. |
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Post by foucaultgirl on Sept 7, 2015 16:35:37 GMT
Is that the Stephanie Bryant mini album class? I also found it extremely underwhelming. She seems like a lovely person, and there are elements of her style I might like to emulate, but I HATE the video-heavy format of the class. Something about having a PDF with photos I can zoom in on is far more helpful to me. yes! It is her class. I like her as an individual, but this class really disappointed me in the lack of material. I feel the same way! I hate saying anything, because she seems so nice, but I wish someone had looked over the materials and asked her to provide more content in PDF form. But, the impression that I have is that I'm in the minority in wanting PDFs instead of videos - it seems like the trend is towards video-content heavy classes. (The Paige Evans stitching class and Paint.Plan.Play suffered from this, too, IMO.) |
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Post by anniefb on Sept 7, 2015 18:45:43 GMT
yes! It is her class. I like her as an individual, but this class really disappointed me in the lack of material. I feel the same way! I hate saying anything, because she seems so nice, but I wish someone had looked over the materials and asked her to provide more content in PDF form. But, the impression that I have is that I'm in the minority in wanting PDFs instead of videos - it seems like the trend is towards video-content heavy classes. (The Paige Evans stitching class and Paint.Plan.Play suffered from this, too, IMO.) I think all the classes seem to be going the BPC route with videos rather than downloadable PDFs, and the content is getting thinner as well. I've done a few classes now and apart from the Sketched Bundle which was such a good deal, wouldn't take any more. I prefer to save my pennies for someone like Ali. |
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Post by gigi333 on Sept 7, 2015 19:11:06 GMT
gigi333, I'm not sure what you mean. Now, internationals pay $3 s&h per kit but any additional items are now charged by weight for shipping. My shipping costs have actually increased under this pricing structure by the time I add the shipping, handling, and bundled items shipping costs all together. The only benefit is to choose my shipping speed. kaybree, try checking out HomeSense for SC products. I've had luck there. Yes but if I only buy my sb kit it's gone from $48 to $38 so it's more appealing to start a sub, so I think they of want international custom that was my popoint and lol when I joined I thought I would only buy my kit each month!! |
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Post by goldenblind221 on Sept 7, 2015 19:24:00 GMT
I feel the same way! I hate saying anything, because she seems so nice, but I wish someone had looked over the materials and asked her to provide more content in PDF form. But, the impression that I have is that I'm in the minority in wanting PDFs instead of videos - it seems like the trend is towards video-content heavy classes. (The Paige Evans stitching class and Paint.Plan.Play suffered from this, too, IMO.) I think all the classes seem to be going the BPC route with videos rather than downloadable PDFs, and the content is getting thinner as well. I've done a few classes now and apart from the Sketched Bundle which was such a good deal, wouldn't take any more. I prefer to save my pennies for someone like Ali. everyone was always asking for more videos. I always saw that as a request/comment anytime SC asked for feedback. I think the video-heavy class format is entirely a result of that. |
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Post by mom on Sept 7, 2015 20:44:36 GMT
I think all the classes seem to be going the BPC route with videos rather than downloadable PDFs, and the content is getting thinner as well. I've done a few classes now and apart from the Sketched Bundle which was such a good deal, wouldn't take any more. I prefer to save my pennies for someone like Ali. everyone was always asking for more videos. I always saw that as a request/comment anytime SC asked for feedback. I think the video-heavy class format is entirely a result of that. I agree - but atleast in this class, even the videos don't really teach you anything. And then no pdf. No reall class discussions. I just don't think it has to be one or the other. A good combo of pdf and video would be nice. |
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Post by goldenblind221 on Sept 7, 2015 21:14:59 GMT
everyone was always asking for more videos. I always saw that as a request/comment anytime SC asked for feedback. I think the video-heavy class format is entirely a result of that. I agree - but atleast in this class, even the videos don't really teach you anything. And then no pdf. No reall class discussions. I just don't think it has to be one or the other. A good combo of pdf and video would be nice. I agree with you entirely; I think it'd be nice if they could strike a good balance. |
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Post by icequeen on Sept 7, 2015 22:10:46 GMT
I agree - but atleast in this class, even the videos don't really teach you anything. And then no pdf. No reall class discussions. I just don't think it has to be one or the other. A good combo of pdf and video would be nice. I agree with you entirely; I think it'd be nice if they could strike a good balance. You're so right about the balance between instruction and demonstration. It's really hit-and-miss with them. I've actually found a lot of the classes to be more hype and flash than actual substance. To be honest, if it weren't for the class kits (full size stamp set) and the digitals, I'd be downright annoyed that I'd paid for some of them. And that's with a rewards discount. The videos are great for teaching me how to do something. If it's just showing me available products (planners & travellers notebooks), a walk-thru someone's finished project, or a process video, I'm disappointed. All of those things are easily found on YouTube for free. Not all fantastic scrappers are good teachers. And the discussion boards are an absolute joke. You'd think the teacher would regularly post or interact with participants to keep a conversation going during the class. It makes me laugh to see how often questions are posted and answered by paying members with no input from the instructor responsible for the actual course. That's why I LOVE Ali's classes. She's on the ball and on top of things throughout the whole duration of the course. |
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Post by aggiebonfire00 on Sept 7, 2015 22:15:46 GMT
Another card making class?!?!?!!? So do we have time for it or not?
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Post by freeatlast on Sept 7, 2015 22:26:22 GMT
Another card making class?!?!?!!? So do we have time for it or not? You know, I would have had a lot more respect for SC if they had come out and said "we don't have enough subscribers for the card kit to be viable" or "we cannot sustain the card kit at the current price" or "the card kit does not fit our profit model" or whatever the REAL reason is they ditched it. But to say "no one has time to make cards anymore" was a slap in the face to us cardmakers. And now to come out with classes? Well, this cardmaker doesn't have time for their classes. I'm too busy making cards. |
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