Fox Valley residents are reacting to the news that Joann Fabric and Craft Store would be closing all of its locations—including their lone Appleton location.
- Judy Sommerfield-Fox says Joann played an important role in the crafting community, and its closure is a loss
- Her personal connection to Joann led her to open Fox Cities Quilt Co., though she says small shops like hers can’t fully replace Joann’s services
- Joann is closing all 800 of its stores nationwide after filing for bankruptcy, citing failed efforts to keep the company running.
- Thousands of employees, including skilled sewers, will be impacted, with workforce expert Dave Froelich offering to help them find new jobs
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
Judy Sommerfield-Fox, owner of Fox Cities Quilt Co. says Joann served a purpose in the crafting community.
For her, the news is personal. She says going to Joann with her mother-in-law kickstarted a new career.
“She came to visit and she said to me, ‘Will you take me to some quilt shops?’ And I thought, ‘Well, I would probably rather have a sharp stick in my eye.’ But maybe I’ll get ice cream for lunch,” Sommerfield-Fox said.
Now, she owns a boutique quilting, fabric, and arts and crafts store on college avenue. It’s a small, specialty business, but she says shops like hers can’t completely make up for the hole left by Joann’s closure.
“We can’t service all of the customers that Joann serviced. We don’t have the space or the inventory for it,” she said.
On Monday, Joann announced it is shutting down all of its approximately 800 stores nationwide. On its website, the company said it “made every possible effort […] to keep the company in business.”
Originally, the company says it planned on shuttering 500 stores, leaving 300 open. But after no one stepped up to run its stores, it declared bankruptcy and is going out of business after more than 80 years.
Thousands of employees, including skilled sewers, are now in the market for a new job.
“These individuals are hard to come by,” said workforce management expert Dave Froelich. “These skilled trades, especially with manufacturing going to more automation—like, people who can sew.”
Froelich, who works with Express Employment Professionals in Appleton, says he’s already reached out to current employees who will be impacted, trying to find them similar work in the Fox Valley.
“I put a comment on Facebook because we actually have a client looking for someone who can sew to come work for them,” he said.
Joann Fabric says it will take a number of weeks to complete final sales across all stores, so it isn’t clear when the Joann store in Appleton will close.
I reached out to the company for more information but have not heard back yet.
