i don't know anything about the OP to even have a problem with her.

i've never had interaction with her except with the polls she takes on the forum.

when she puts up a poll i give my opinion just like every body else - thats the extent of the relationship.

i didn't ask her to justify why she has to charge so much - she chose to go on about her overhead, living wages, taxes, etc - no one put her on the spot to make those statements. - klue



imho, she did have to justify herself, because she was being challenged by the suggestion that her prices SHOULD be lower because she had no overhead as brick-and-mortar stores do. how and why she prices as she does is nobody's business.

as i understood it, the issue is a question: how would you rather spend your money? on more for less $$ per yard? or less for more $$ per yard? that was all she asked. for whatever reasons.

am i misinterpreting this?

well, i can't speak for the OP but you are misinterpreting my statement.

i was pointing out that many online stores, which is her primary source of sales, sell the discontinued fabric lines and that her prices in comparison are high.

i wasn't telling her this so she would explain her pricing guidelines.

1) i asked her to remind me if her competition is local or online
2) if she deals mainly with online sales then price is off with other online retailers that deal with discontinued fabric lines.

these online stores will be her major competition and the people who typically shop there do so because the prices are so low.

I would have to say that I have never bought more than 2 or at the most 3 fabrics together in a line. I also do not care if it is "the latest", I shop for what I like, and what calls my name. I enjoy the process of pulling fabrics from all over to come together in my quilts to contrast and complement each other. I have to confess, I will frequently go to the back of the store upon entering to see what it at the sale tables before I search the rest of the inventory. I love to get a good price on fabrics. My LQS here down the road will often have "Designer Cuts" of fabric, that may be the end of a bolt or something they got from the distributer or something that is of same high quality that they will mark at 50% off. Usually it is in a piece that you have to buy the whole thing of, anywhere from 1/2 yard to up to 3 yards. I have purchased many of those and then gone through the store to find something to "go" with it. A favorite store, that closed back in March, used to have huge sales on holiday days and would put tons of fabric on sale for $1 or $1.69 or $3 a yard and that is where I got most of my fabrics. I have learned which fabrics to buy and which are not worth putting in my quilts.
So.... having "last years" fabrics for a cheaper price is what I would look at first.

I am one that buys the line as they are so well matched also I love kits if I know the shop and they don't cut to short I would rather pay a little more for a kit and have plenty of fabric so many patterns work up so much better for me if I stick to the line hope this answers your question
Dodie

Hi Red,

Here's a link to Quiltshops.com showing some online stores that carry the fabs you're looking for. Hope this helps you. Good luck.

http://search.myquiltshops.com/cgi-s...gi?thumbnails=

thread doesnt work quiltgranny

This is basically my answer, too. I can't afford several pieces in a 'line', for a large quilt, so I 'build', bundles for a project. Many times, I either have scrap pieces or actual fabrics with me, to get a good coordination.
You are definitely passing over a huge crowd, if you are not stocking with the 'bargain shopper' in mind.
We had two lqs here, that i didn't go to for over two years, after my last visits, bc their, 'line fabrics', were too costly. :D

I am a quilter who relies almost solely on "serendipity" to find my key fabrics and then go on a "sensible" shopping trip to find the secondary fabrics or neutrals. Price these days is a factor, though from time to time I am prepared to pay a little extra for an exceptional piece.

I love stores that have an eclectic mix, because this suits my style, but I do understand the need to have a decent selection of new lines and popular designers latest prints. I was pretty disappointed recently when visiting a large fabric warehouse in our nearest town....everything was so mainstream and frankly a little boring, I came out with nothing but some needles and other "hardware".

So if I was buying....I'd do a half and half...and sometimes it's the way something is marketed that makes or breaks the sale. Discontinued or old stock sounds foul, whereas, "limited edition" or "last opportunity to buy exclusive pattern at a special price" (bit wordy but you know what I mean) sounds like if you don't buy, you will never see it again....much more appealing.

I also use vintage materials and other outlets, like car park markets and charity stores, so maybe I'm in the minority, but anyway, thought I'd chime in. Hope all goes well.

I'm a bargain hunter. That definitely does not mean I buy cheap fabric; a bargain is excellent fabric at an excellent price. Half or more of the fun I have is finding a "treasure", i.e, a great piece of fabric; then, over time, I find matches for it. Sometimes, I put no effort into finding the matches until I see which quilt pattern I want to use the 'treasure' for. I've never bought a coordinated design selection and probably won't. I've seen some I really like, though.

As for your question: are you making a mistake not stocking less expensive fabrics? ... only you can answer that ... if your business is flourishing without the bargain fabric, then perhaps there's not much point in adding it. I shop where there is a wide price range as well as a large fabric selection.