For a shop adding a thread to their line is a significant investment. Their customers will want every color, not matter how many that is. The manufacturer has minimums, maybe the number of packages or the size of the order. If it’s a new company for the shop, an account needs to be established.
Then there are the non-financial factors to consider. Threads take up space — where will they go? Is a new thread going to be more popular than an old? Can you get rid of a line of thread to make room? How quickly will this thread line grow? Do you have space for that? Do you have people to stock the shelves? To update the inventory system? To learn about the thread and, maybe, stitch some samples?
You can see that it isn’t always an easy choice.
Most shops carry some basic threads: metallics, floss, silk, pearl cotton, and some overdyes and specialty threads. But every one of these threads has many choices. What brands do you carry? What sizes of the thread will your customers want? What do other shops in the area carry?
Each shop balances all these factors to choose what threads it carries.
For us as stitchers it can mean that we have to search, sometimes quite awhile, to find the threads we want.
Getting the Thread
Every business is different and this is true of thread companies as well. Because it costs them to process orders and to package their product, often they have minimums. Usually with threads this is a minimum number of packages. Some companies, usually smaller makers, have a minimum of one. Others have 3, or 6. DMC’s minimum for floss is 12 skeins because floss comes in boxes of a dozen.
Manufacturers can also decide who they will sell to. Most small- or medium-sized thread companies do not sell to consumers. Others will send your order to a shop to fulfill. Others sell direct. In general you’re safe to assume that you cannot buy direct.
For the shop they have to wait for enough orders to sell off that minimum, or find a place to put the extras. If we want one package of a thread we may have to wait for the shop to get enough orders to bring it in, even as a special order.
Another consideration for shops is cash flow and how to spend their money. They can, for legitimate business reasons, wait to order a company’s threads, even if they have sales for them.
What’s a Stitcher to Do?
When I want a thread I go through a process to find it:
- I consider how badly I need it. This helps me know if I need to find a shop that has it in stock or not.
- I check to see if my LNS carries it. If it doesn’t, do they carry a near substitute?
- If not, do nearby shops carry it? Depending on your area, shops may coordinate the threads they carry.
- If it’s a thinner than usual thread for needlepoint, have I looked at cross stitch, embroidery, and quilting shops in my area? I would do this for threads such as Kreinik Blending Filament, #8 pearl, or wider silk ribbons.
- I have a mental list of shops with great selections of thread. I use them as my next line of resources to find threads. If I need the thread fast I always ask them to check stock before I order.
- Check other shops on the manufacturer’s list. You can usually find these on their websites. Al though some of the folks on them are teachers who order threads for class kits, most are shops.
It can be a long process. That’s one of the reasons why I often look to thread substitutions.
This process does not always work, but almost always I can find the thread I want, even though I may have to wait.
About Janet M Perry
Janet Perry is the Internet's leading authority on needlepoint. She designs, teaches and writes, getting raves from her fans for her innovative techniques, extensive knowledge and generous teaching style. A leading writer of stitch guides, she blogs here and lives on an island in the northeast corner of the SF Bay with her family
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