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This has happened to be many, many times. I saw them the other day unloading a box of stamps - I said anything new or same old same old? She said she was just restocking the old stuff. It never changes.
I agree, I have started doing much of my hobby shopping online. The chain stores are very high priced and even with the 40% off coupons some prices are still higher then some online stores. I do have one LSS in my area that I love. If she dosent carry what I want she will order it for me. I love going there if just to look and touch..
NOPE nothing new in the 3 Mike's near me - same old boring stuff that I bought at least 2 yrs ago - and complaining to them doesn't help - cause if they were listening to everyone telling them there is never anything new they would have done something about it already! The "NEW" Mike's that they tried near me is switching back to the old Mike's with the classroom back and the regular aisles - no more mouse maze scrapping area!!
I agree, I have started doing much of my hobby shopping online. The chain stores are very high priced and even with the 40% off coupons some prices are still higher then some online stores. I do have one LSS in my area that I love. If she dosent carry what I want she will order it for me. I love going there if just to look and touch..
Boy do I hear you! We have a Hobby Lobby in town, and their prices are NOT good, even with the 40% coupon, Dick Blick and Frantic Fran beat them every time. I also like to use some special things that HL just doesn't carry, like Japanese and Thai papers. Whe I do buy stamps, I want pretty specialized images so I order online too. I just figured out that they have high retail, so that when they offer the coupons they can still make big money. Yeah, I'm a little slow. I guess before I retired, money wasn't as big an issue as it is now. NOW I pay attention to these things!
Michaels is all over the spectrum. They dont have any area(s) that makes them different from Hobby Lobby or Joanns except maybe the Martha Stewart over priced stuff.
I dont think I will be going back there unless I hear they have something new.
And their restrooms are filthy. I have been in cleaner rest stops.
I haven't been buying a lot at Michael's lately either. I have only been buying items I need. I think it's because I found my style. I don't need anything. I want specialty tools now. I can only get those online.
Now I must also state that I am an instructor at Michales, but I have found that they are carrying more Ranger products, especially the new Tim Holtz die cuts, as well as the new liquid pearls and other things.
In addition my Michaels has a ton of great Christmas stamps, unmounted rubber no less, and some other good Christmas supplies.
The classes are pretty good too, especially for people just starting out, and there are some really good classes for those of us who have been stamping a while, love the paper bag mini album class (need to get that on my schedule). The two classes I am teaching this month and next are the Martha Stewart classes, techniques with glitter and techniques with the punches.
It is hard to see the changes going on at Michaels as they have so many stores and not all the stores are getting the updated merchandise....hopefully this will change soon.
Am also considering hosting my own classes locally as I might have some retail space available to me, would do classes and carry small amounts of supplies to sell, have to work the details out though.
__________________ AfterHoursStamper.blogspot.com �It is easier to believe a lie that one has heard a thousand times than to believe a fact that no one has heard before�
I was really ticked off yesterday when I got home from Michaels and looked at my receipt. I had a coupon that was an EXTRA 15% off reg. & sale price strung beads. I had a few items, and it was really busy so I didn't check my receipt like I usually do. They only took the 15% off the beads when they were also on sale for 40% off. I bought 3 strands that I'm going to take back now, plus all the other accessories that I bought to make the necklace and earing set.
More than once, I've had to read the fine print. Fifteen percent off one item, not the order. Grrrrr I have the coupons each week and they just stack up, with money tighter, I'm more choosy.
Come on guys, let's give Michaels a little bit of a break!
On the anniversary of 9-11, I'm inclined to be in a count your blessings mood.
We can all become pretty spoiled and jaded about our stamping supplies and whine about never finding anything new. Every day, someone is discovering this wonderful hobby, and is thrilled to find things at Michaels. In the several years I've been stamping, they have expanded their product lines quite a bit.
And, for those who don't live in a metro area with Michaels stores, a trip to Michaels, or Hobby Hobby, or Joann's can be a fun adventure.
I spent some time chatting here on SCS with a sweet gal in Norway who wanted a new, better paper cutter. She told me she had to take a train, and a bus, and travel about 60 miles to find the only scrapbook store available. And then, the cutter that we can buy here at Michaels, (with a coupon) for about $25, cost her 80$!!
Okay, off my soapbox, and carry on.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
My Michaels is only a couple of years old so it's still clean and orderly. I get Tombow refills, glue dots, trimmer blades and clear embossing powder there. Otherwise I walk out empty handed! I shop online for specific tools and papers like Basic Grey, etc. I have one independent craft store in town that has the G45 single sheets. But, so far, they have nothing in the newer collections.
I don't particularly like DCWV stacks so that leaves me with Michael's single sheets and they never seem to have what I'm looking for. But I did recently buy a package of their white cs-thinner than SU or PTI - for testing 3d projects and insides of cards. It's not bad, very smooth and a good bright white.
I used to go to Michael's all the time to see if they got any new products in. Seems they never do. I don't even look at the stamps anymore. With all the lines available and all the new products they could carry, they never seem to change or update their stock.
Last time I went into Michael's they had a few things I thought ooo I will have to get them the next time I'm here... can't remember what they were for the life of me now!
I think what Michael's has depends on what you already have. If you have been in this hobby for a few years then yeah, you are probably at that stage where you have most of your bases covered (I know I should be!). TBH I haven't seen a lot of new, gotta have it, never seen that before, stuff in the Papercrafting world for a couple of years... Even if all I can use my coupon for is adhesive that is 40% off my adhesive! and I can use that 40% somewhere else for that "new" stuff!
Annette, you have a point. We do keep going in there, don't we?
The coupons entice us to go in there which is a great marketing tool! I have to admit sometimes I have bought something because I could use the coupon.
This trip I was there for paper, ladder trellis yarn, a black vase, and pop cake sticks. I didnt care for their paper and they didnt have the other items.
My M's in Canada charges double for the Tim Holtz stuff and not even worth buying with a coupon. They have this new system for paying and it is stupid. I have not met one single person in line that is happy. M's here in Nanaimo, BC sucks big time. I worked there for a few years and they do not give two cracks about their employees.
Just one example of how the coupons have fooled me into thinking I was getting a deal:
Prices for Prismacolor Pencils, Tin Box Set of 132
Dick Blick $99.00
Hobby Lobby $199.00 with 40% off coupon $119.40
Jerry�s Artarama $127.44 currently on sale for $105.99
Prismacolor Pencils open stock
Hobby Lobby 1.89 each with 40% coupon 1.14 (but you can only buy one per day)
Dick Blick .88 each
I buy my pencils open stock from Dick Blick, better price and less breakage. I order most of my supplies online because I can get what I want and I can usually find it cheaper or as cheap as with the coupon.I think the coupons are a gimmick to fool customers into thinking they are getting a deal, when in fact, most often you do not.
For me Michaels is geared towards the novice or one time crafter. Customer loyalty and retention does not appear to be part of their business model. They carry a little bit of a lot of things but specialize in nothing. They're like an oversized convenience store. I go there when I want convenience or as a last resort because no one else had what I needed. They don't usually have it either, but by the time I get there, I'm driven by desperation and not out of any sense of consumer loyalty.
If you email them, they'll never respond, but if yo post on their facebook page where everyone can see, it sure gets their attention quick.
__________________ �:*�*:�My next house won't have a kitchen. Just a bunch of vending machines and garbage cans.�:*�*:�
My trip to Micheals
