I said in my Commentary for today's (10/20/03) issue that I had a variety of thoughts that wouldn't coalesce into a unified concept or point of view. So here are some random comments about Crafts magazine morphing into Paper Crafts.

1. I had not seen a copy of Crafts in months, so I went to the largest newsstand in Peoria, the local Barnes & Noble, to look for a copy. There was a large selection of industry-related magazines, but not one had "crafts" in the title. (Crafts 'n Things may have been sold out.)

2. It seems ironic: HIA has spent a fortune in recent years on the "Crafts. Discover Life's Little Pleasures" branding campaign. Now you can hardly find a magazine that calls itself "Crafts."

3. When the members of the ACCI/HIA Merger Task Force discussed the new name for the merged associations, we all immediately included "Crafts" in all of our suggestions. Was that unnecessary?

4. Judith Brossart, who was editor of Crafts longer than anyone, and is now head of Judith Brossart Communications, asked the most cogent question of all: "Is there still a core crafter, or are creative people doing a particular thing, each devoted to a niche activity?"

In other words, does every creative person now see herself in just one type of ... craft? Do consumers in a large craft store walk directly to a particular aisle for their category of interest, then walk out, or do they wander the aisles looking at other things?

5. A veteran designer said, "Younger people today just don't know crafts." And I thought, "Maybe they're just redefining what crafts are."

6. Soon after I started work at PCM magazine, across the aisle from the Crafts magazine staff at the old PJS Publications office in Peoria, there was a big celebration. Folio magazine, the trade magazine for magazine publishers, had just published its annual list of the largest and fastest growing magazines in the country. In only its second or third year of existence, Crafts was named one of the leaders in growing newsstand sales, subscriptions, ad revenue, etc.

Everyone was very excited and proud, but the publisher, Jerry Constantino, seemed rather subdued. When I asked why, he pointed out that there were publishers all over the country reading those lists and saying, "Hmmm, crafts. Maybe we ought to get into that."

It didn't take long before Crafts had more competitors than we could count.

7. Crafts got its name this way: PJS Publications decided to start a consumer craft magazine and the staff held numerous planning meetings. One of the perplexing issues was, what to call it? Lots of names were kicked around -- Creative Crafts, Crafts for the Home, etc. Finally Geoff Wheeler, then editor ofPCM asked, "What about ... Crafts?"

People scoffed at the idea, assuming that something so basic had already been trademarked by somebody. They checked. No one had trademarked it. So Crafts it was.

8. Lots of companies are going off in various directions. Craft stores are becoming "home dec centers," craft magazines morph into specialty magazines, etc. Everyone has what seems like a sound business reason for making such a change. But if everyone leaves ... what are we?

9. Numerous other types of retailers are taking bits and pieces of what, I thought, was us. Hardware stores, home centers, stationery shops, gift stores, toy stores, etc. Meanwhile, Michaels execs plan to sell more gifts this holiday season, and you have to walk around the edges of a Hobby Lobby store to realize it sells, uh, crafts.

The boundaries are certainly blurring, aren't they?

10. Various popular tv series talk about do-it-yourself home decor, and never use the word "crafts." But that's what it is, isn't it?

See why I'm confused? Help me out! Send your thoughts on all this to mike@clnonline.com.

(Note: To read previous Business-Wise columns, click on the titles in the right-hand column.)

xxx