Recently I was thinking about the closure of Jo-Ann stores, for reasons that will be obvious shortly. Seeking more information about the retailer, I came across an article published at a site called dengarden. The headline says, It’s the End of an Era: Joann Fabrics Has Officially Closed All of Its Stores.
A human- or machine-written head? It doesn’t matter, there’s a cliché that needs to be retired. End of an Era, eh? I remember thinking the same thing when the last Radio Shack bit the dust. Or maybe not.
The company is – was – Jo-Ann Stores. What will customers do without it? “Big-box retailers like Michaels and Hobby Lobby offer a decent selection of fabric and craft materials,” the article says. “Online shops, from niche sewing stores to large marketplaces, have stepped in to fill the gap. Many small, independently owned fabric and yarn stores are also gaining attention as shoppers turn local.”
The closure might be a hardship for those who lost their jobs, but for everyone else, this barely qualifies as the turn of a page, much less the end of an era.
But I quibble. A few weeks ago, at Yuriko’s request, we went to a nearby Jo-Ann store to look for bargains. Rather, she did.
I went to witness the retail dissolution in person. The place had that Venezuelan store look, assuming the reports about that nation are still correct.
Even toward the end of a store’s existence, there can be oddities.
I didn’t buy it, even at a steep discount. Will I regret my decision from now on, until I reach my deathbed? Nah.