It's true that Cranston is not going to be printing in the US anymore.
I do a lot of business with Cranston, and was thrilled to be offered a tour of their mill last summer, when it was still humming. The wonderful folks there were kind enough to take show me all their various departments, from design to laser etching of the screens to printing, to where they fold it onto bolts, to the robot that loads it onto pallets to the warehouse where it's stacked high up to the ceiling. (They even put a welcome message to me on their company sign... what a marvelous crew!)
Of all the manufacturers that I work with, the Cranston crew is just the very nicest.
So when the news came down late last winter that the printing and finishing portion would be closing, they called me to tell me that they would be finished printing in June. They know that I've done all that I could, as one small business, to promote the fact that they were still printing here in the US.
They still run the folding department, and they still design and sell fabrics, both the VIP line (carried in chains such as Wal-Mart) and their upscale Quilting Treasures line.
The additional news - which I think has become widely known yet - is that after August they will not be selling EITHER of their brands through distributors. They will be selling direct to businesses, through their sales reps. Now, quilt shops probably already know that they can buy Cranston products via the reps. The ones who will be "out in the cold", so to speak, are the crafters and really small businesses who like the pick-and-choose concept of a bolt of this-brand-and-a-bolt-of-that, which is ideal for getting through distributors. So... because I came to this business via the craft show circuit, I had a long talk with the Cranston's customer service department to see how we could still serve this segment of the business. I will put up another post about that, 'cause it's just a wee bit off topic for this one... and should probably have its own thread.