Table of Contents
Overview
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- What you need to know
- Definition
Executive Summary
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- Overview
- The issues
- Traditional crafts are declining
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- Figure 1: Adult craft participation in the last 12 months (net) – Simmons, 2010-18
- Stereotypes persist
- Mass merchandizers and craft stores are in tight competition
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- Figure 2: Craft purchase location, November 2018
- Talent and time deter people from crafting
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- Figure 3: Barriers to crafting for interested noncrafters, November 2018
- The opportunities
- Hispanic crafters
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- Figure 4: Craft participation, by race and Hispanic origin, by type, November 2018
- Simple projects
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- Figure 5: Craft participation, by type, November 2018
- Instagram may be the new Pinterest
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- Figure 6: Social media usage for project inspiration, iGens and Millennials, November 2018
- What it means
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Crafting is down among adults, up among teens and kids
- Fewer households with kids makes reaching the youth more important
- The end of Toys“R”Us leads craft stores to diversify
- Screens fight for attention
- Michaels is toying with competitors
- Hobby Lobby sticks to its principles
- Jo-Ann rebrands
- Etsy gets-y serious
- Mass merchandizers are relying on scale, convenience
The Market
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- Traditional craft participation by adults continues its bumpy ride
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- Figure 7: Adult craft participation in the last 12 months (net) – Simmons, 2010-18
- All surveyed crafts decline among adults
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- Figure 8: Adult participation in specific crafts in the last 12 months (Simmons), 2010-18
- Uptick in participation among kids and teens
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- Figure 9: Teens’ and kids’ participation in crafts in the last 12 months (Simmons), net any craft, 2010-18
- Declining for adults, photography is rebounding for teens
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- Figure 10: Teens’ participation in specific crafts in the last 12 months (Simmons), 2010-18
- Figure 11: Kids’ participation in specific crafts in the last 12 months (Simmons), 2010-18
Market Factors
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- Continued decline of the share of households with children
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- Figure 12: Share of households, by presence of related children, 2008-18
- There’s money to spend, but people may need convincing to craft
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- Figure 13: Disposable personal income change from previous period, January 2007-November 2018
Market Perspective
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- RIP Toys“R”Us
- Party on
- Mobile games make recreation a battle royale
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- Figure 14: Profile of mobile device gamer, March 2018
- Reuniting families by limiting screen time
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- Figure 15: Millennial priorities, by parental status, March 2018
Key Retailers
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- Michaels Stores Inc.
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- Figure 16: Net of sales and number of Michaels and related stores at the end of FY 2012-17
- Hobby Lobby
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- Figure 17: Hobby Lobby 50%-Off Christmas Sale, November 2018
- Jo-Ann Stores, Inc.
- Etsy
- Mass merchandisers
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- Figure 18: Walmart’s Art, Craft, Sewing & Party Supplies website menu, December 2018
Key Trends – What You Need to Know
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- Paper crafts, crocheting emerging on social
- Magnets attracting attention
- Turning against perfection
- Tariffs threaten to raise prices
- Print media continues to struggle
- Etsy may be alienating its base
- In 2019, put a ^_^ on it
- Dressing up a hobby
- Wellness hits arts and crafts
What’s Popular?
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- Paper chase
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- Figure 19: Top arts and crafts topics on Instagram, globally, November 2017-18
- Crocheting conversations on the rise
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- Figure 20: Top arts and crafts topics on Pinterest, November 2017-18
- Licensed characters attract fan purchase
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- Figure 21: Opinions of licensed character merchandise, by gender and parental status, July 2018
- Magnets attracting consumers
- Celebrating our #fails
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- Figure 22: Instances of “Pinterest fails” on Pinterest, November 2017-18
- Public shared workshops
What’s Struggling?
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- Tariffs affect craft materials
- Folding magazines make bad papercraft
- Etsy changes vex sellers
What’s Next?
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- 2019 arts and crafts trends
- Subdued yet rich
- Continued cosplay growth
- Wellness through crafting
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- Figure 23: LEGO Forma: First Of Its Kind Partnership with Indiegogo, October 2018
- Etsy Premium
- Craft with me?
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Millennials are the craft generation
- Hispanics are a huge opportunity
- Easy, please-y
- Technology is the future
- Specialty retailers face challenges from online sellers
- Pinterest most popular source of inspiration, but doesn’t reign
- Make instructions digestible
- There is value in the process
The Crafter
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- Crafting most popular among the young
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- Figure 24: Craft participation, November 2018
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- Figure 25: Incidence of crafting, by gender and generation, November 2018
- Millennial passions include crafts
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- Figure 26: Passion for crafting, by gender, generation, and income, November 2018
- Crafting lowest among highest earners
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- Figure 27: Craft participation, by household income, November 2018
- Impressions of crafters
- They’re everywhere!
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- Figure 28: Craft participation, by area, November 2018
- Crafting isn’t always about the destination
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- Figure 29: Perceptions of process over result, by gender, November 2018
The Projects
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- Simple crafts are the most popular
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- Figure 30: Craft participation, by type, November 2018
- Parent crafting drop-off
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- Figure 31: Craft participation of parents, by age group of children, November 2018
- Hispanics are big into crafting
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- Figure 32: Craft participation, by race and Hispanic origin, by type, November 2018
- Connector pins vs needles
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- Figure 33: Participation in specific crafts, by gender, November 2018
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- Figure 34: Ownership/interest in tech devices, Net, by gender, May 2018
- Looking toward the future
- Cosplay
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- Figure 35: Craft participation, by generation, November 2018
Shopping for Craft Supplies
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- Craft retailers face challenges
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- Figure 36: Craft purchase location, November 2018
- Specialty craft retailers can improve party supplies
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- Figure 37: Craft purchase location, by craft type, November 2018
- Jo-Ann Stores still wins in textiles, but aiming for multicategory appeal
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- Figure 38: Craft purchase location, by craft type, November 2018
- Specialty retailers need to hold on to younger consumers
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- Figure 39: Craft purchase location, by generation, November 2018
- Men shop wherever local may be
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- Figure 40: Craft purchase location, by gender, November 2018
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- Figure 41: Reasons for choosing a craft retailer, by gender, November 2018
- Price is the most important factor by far
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- Figure 42: TURF analysis – Craft supply retailer considerations, November 2018
- Amazon beating craft stores on price
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- Figure 43: Path to purchase between Amazon and brick-and-mortar retailer, April 2018
Inspiration
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- A life less Pinteresting
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- Figure 44: Sources of project inspiration, November 2018
- Instagram is becoming a more important platform
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- Figure 45: Social media usage for project inspiration, iGens and Millennials, November 2018
- Magazines have value, but need to modernize
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- Figure 46: Usage of magazines for inspiration, by generation, November 2018
- Black and Hispanic crafters browse beyond Pinterest
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- Figure 47: Social media inspiration sources, by race and Hispanic origin, November 2018
- Craft stores need to be more personable
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- Figure 48: Sources of inspiration, social media vs retailers, by generation, November 2018
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- Figure 49: Attitudes toward companies, October 2018
- Tech crafters look to varied sources for inspiration
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- Figure 50: Inspiration sources, by craft type, November 2018
Barriers to Crafting
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- Lack of interest is the primary barrier
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- Figure 51: Barriers to crafting, November 2018
- Aw, there’s nothing in that craft bag for me
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- Figure 52: Barriers to crafting for interested noncrafters, November 2018
- Crafts aren’t a hobby for the elderly
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- Figure 53: Interest-based reasons for not crafting, by generation, November 2018
- Time is a factor for Millennials, Gen Xers
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- Figure 54: Reasons for not crafting, Millennials and Generation X, November 2018
Attitudes toward the Process
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- Millennials are into the process
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- Figure 55: Attitudes about the arts and crafts process, by generation, November 2018
- Cheer up, young ones
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- Figure 56: Discouragement, by generation, November 2018
- White crafters more likely to craft alone
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- Figure 57: Attitudes toward crafting, by race and Hispanic origin, November 2018
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Direct marketing creative
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
Appendix – The Market
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- Figure 58: Adult craft participation in the last 12 months, 2010-18
- Figure 59: Teen craft participation in the last 12 months, 2010-18
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- Figure 60: Kids craft participation in the last 12 months, 2010-18
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