Originally Posted by BellaBoo
I found some beautiful fabric at a nearby Walmart yesterday morning. It is part of the quilt of the month for May fabric line. On the selvage it had David Textiles. I could not find anything to suggest it was less then the quilt shop quality cotton. It feels, cuts, and sews better then the Moda fabric I have. The fabric clerk told me not many Walmarts carry the quilt of the month fabric with free quilt pattern every month. She said it was ordered separate from a buyer that contacts the store fabric manager. It's up to the fabric manager if the line is carried in the store if the store sells fabric. The fabric dept manager at this store is a quilter! I think that makes a big difference in how profitable the fabric sales are. Most of the craft/fabric managers have no interest, just doing a job.
When fabric manufacturers test colors, pattern etc. and it is not perfect, they may sell it to other stores like WalMart and Joanns. They may use the same quality fabric as their first quality, but very often do not. So eventhough the print may be the same, it may not be the quality fabric you anticipate. That's not to say it's going to be terrible, just not first quality.