I have done Row by Row for three years now across several states as I have traveled and as I understand it one of the purposes of it is to drive traffic to quilt shops, hence the rule you have to go to the shop to pick up the pattern. I have many patterns for rows that I have collected that I will most likely never use in a quilt but I have had the experience of going to shops that I have never been to or some I've never even hear of. That in itself has been such fun. The shops work hard on designing the rows and participating in this event. If we want quilt shops to continue to thrive this is one way we can support them. This is why I usually purchase something while I am there. Each year I have a project in mind that I search for fabric for. This year it is fabric for a Lucy Boston quilt I'm working on. Many shops don't know what I am talking about so it gives me an opportunity to also share with them plus they are usually curious as they watch me with my templates auditioning different fabric. Last year it was felted wool for an applique project.
Technically if someone goes into a shop they can get a pattern or buy a kit regardless of who it is for. The pattern or kit is only part of it however. The being there, seeing the different shops' personalities is a big part of the overall experience.