Craft Focus - April/May 2020 (Issue 78)

46 CORINNE LAPIERRE “This was our fourth year exhibiting at Stitches and I think this was our most successful year so far.” commented Corinne. “It’s always a great show to catch up with our existing stockists and to meet new ones. The social aspect of the show is very important too and it’s the one event of the year where we meet other craft businesses. “We’ve seen the show evolve over the last few years. The footfall was a little down on previous years, probably due to the awful weather, but we found that all visitors were actual buyers or professionals. “The educational aspect of the show was especially impressive this year. The craft report was extremely useful and confirmed what we have been experiencing for the last few months. Textile crafts are on the rise, especially embroidery and more and more people are organising retreats and workshops in the community. “We’re very excited to launch our range of craft workshop packs this month as so many of our stockists have been asking for them. Stitches is always such a great place to talk to our customers and get their feedback.” in fo@corinnelapierre.com corinnelapierre.com Dannel ls “Although we’ve noticed a decrease in the visitor numbers this year, our stand was very active, especially with people enquiring about our workshop pack products, as retailers now view in-store events as key to driving footfall and increasing sales. Our workshop packs are designed for retailers to tap into the flourishing and growing ‘Learning Experiences Economy’ by hosting Create & Make in-store events and also providing entertainment in their stores.” commented David Little, director Dannells. +44 (0)1992 700 311 dannells.com ZWEIGART “Our colour range and our novelties in cross stitch fabrics and idea books were well received! Also, the new trend of Punch Needle attracted quite a number of visitors. It’s one of the new trends in needlework for 2020, therefore coarse and fine punch works were shown on Zweigart’ premium fabrics on our stand.” Comments Zweigart’s Bastian Wollmann. zweigart.com