In the light of JOANN’s bankruptcy and ongoing liquidation, Placer.ai has analyzed how foot traffic patterns helped explain what the firm called the fabric and crafts retailer’s “unraveling.”
JOANN—formerly JO-ANN STORES—was founded in 1943. During the pandemic, when many consumers stayed home, took on crafting projects, which gave the stores a needed boost. Foot traffic in the second half of 2020 was consistently above the January 2019 baseline.
However, that fell away starting in February 2021. Visits dropped below pre-pandemic levels, and end-of-year seasonal visits couldn’t match 2019 Q4.
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For a comparison, average winter holiday consumer budgets were $886 in 2019, $880 in 2020, $879 in 2021, $833 in 2022, $875 in 2023, and $902 in 2024, according to Capital One Shopping Research. Advance retail sales figures from the Census Bureau for Q4 showed year-over-year increases of 7.7% in 2020, 13.8% in 2021, 5.3% in 2022, 2.7% in 2023, and 3.8% in 2024.
Overall, 2024 visits to JOANN were 4.4% less than in 2019. Since the announcement of the liquidation sales, traffic has been up 83.2% over the January 2019 baseline.
Placer.ai pointed to multiple factors contributing to the chain’s problems, including superstore and e-commerce competition. The former saw an increasing share of foot traffic. Between 2019 and 2024, the percentage of JOANN visitors who also went to Walmart went from 90.2% to 92.4%. Target’s share grew from 80.8% to 83.2%.
Craft chains Michaels and Hobby Lobby, both grew their shares respectively to 49.9% and 49.1%, both up from less than 45%.
Foot traffic was also critical, given an analysis of the economic strata JOANN, Michaels, and Hobby Lobby attracted. The median household incomes of the three were $82,7000, $87,700, and $78,100. Higher incomes mean more available income to spend. With the right pricing, attractive offers and merchandise, a business might do well enough with less traffic.
With JOANN exiting the scene, Placer.ai suggests that the chain’s wealthier clientele might move toward Michaels, and the lower-income customers would turn to Hobby Lobby. Of course, that would depend on the local availability of the competitors.
Though proximity to superstores and more direct competitors might have siphoned away consumers from JOANN, eventually leaving it with an unsustainable business.
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