We are so pleased to be able to present an all-star lineup of speakers on our Main Stage at h+h americas 2025. The Main Stage is located right on the show floor and attendance at these sessions is free for all attendees. Learn about sustainability, craftivism, cosplay, collaborating with brands, and so much more!
Plus, we’re also incredibly excited to announce our incredible keynote speakers and our State of the Industry panelists! These sessions are also open to everyone in attendance at no extra charge. Kick off each day of the show with an inspiring and eye-opening session!
Main Stage
Wednesday, May 7, 2025
10:30-11:30 am – Crafting Connections: Mastering Marketing for Your Store with Less Money!
Want to make a big impact without a big budget? Join us as we explore smart, cost-effective marketing strategies tailored for shop owners. In this session, we’ll break down how to know your audience, understand your platform, align your resources, and minimize your budget while maximizing engagement. Whether you’re focusing on email, social media, print media, or a combination, you’ll walk away with actionable insights to grow your audience and drive sales—without overspending. Perfect for brick-and-mortar craft stores looking to make every marketing dollar count!
Speakers: Stacy West of Buttermilk Basin in Minnesota, Teresa Coenen of Stitchin’ Tree in Iowa, Sherry Mitchel of Mitchell Wool in Michigan, and Heather Swan of Yarncom in Missouri.
Moderated by: Sunny Scrivner of Yarn in California
11:45 am-12:30 pm – Crafting a Vibrant Economy with Community, Circularity, & Supply Chain Solutions
In the face of disruption and uncertainty across our global business community, this panel explores the role of creativity and craft in building a more resilient economy, communities that thrive, and stable supply chains. In this panel, craft industry business leaders share their approach to infusing purpose into long-term growth strategies that are also profit-driven. You’ll take away practical ideas for turning existing business practices into opportunities for deepening loyalty among customers while also doing better for the common good.
Speakers: Radha Weaver of Sewing Through Fog and Feel Good Fibers, Nicole Asselin and Kelsey Brown of Village Fabric Shop, Marisa Cid of Pascuali
Moderated by: Katy Osborn of Nowhere Collective
12:45-1:15 pm – Fireside Chat with Craig Conover
Join television personality and Sewing Down South founder Craig Conover for a fireside chat. Craig is a new designer with Robert Kaufman Fabrics.
Speaker: Craig Conover
Moderated by: Robert Kaufman Fabrics
1:00-1:45 pm – Threads of Change: Advancing Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in the Fiber Industry
Join us for a compelling fireside chat on the Main Stage at h+h americas 2025, where we’ll explore the vital role of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the fiber industry. Through candid conversation, we’ll discuss how businesses can foster more inclusive communities, drive meaningful change, and ensure that every maker, retailer, brand, and ultimately, the consumer has a seat at the table and feels a sense of belonging in the space.
Speaker: Cecilia Nelson-Hurt of CreativeCeci
Moderated by: Anastasia Williams, founder of the Fiber Business Collectiv
3:00-4:15 – Getting to know the Cosplay Consumer
Get ready to learn about the unlimited potential of the cosplay crafting community! Join our h+h Americas cosplay guests for an in-depth discussion about why the cosplay crafter is your next big demographic. Be sure to join our panelists for an additional hour of Q+A after the panel in the h+h cosplay exhibition presented by Famore Cutlery.
Speakers:
- Yaya Han, Cosplay Designer, Author, and Businesswoman
- Melanie Jasmine of MJasmine Design
- Tiphani and Tamarah Dixon of Pros and Cons Cosplay
- Michael and Jordan Damato of Caffienecraft and Setterspecs
- Maggie Hoffman of Create Whimsy
Moderated by: Diana Tolin
Thursday, May 8, 2025
10:30-11:30 am – Build Community and Make Change
Craft can be a profound tool for community building and organizing for social and political change. Join us and hear from some powerful craftivist leaders who are organizing and mobilizing their communities through craft.
Speakers: Jen Simonic of The Loose Ends Project, Austin Rivers of Knit the Rainbow, Jen LaMastra of the Liberty Crochet Mural, and Melissa Blount of the Breonna Taylor postcard campaign.
Moderated by: Shannon Downey of Badass Cross Stitch
12:00-1:00 pm – Building a Better World, One Stitch at a Time with Jonah Larson
Jonah is working across borders and barriers to bring people together. Whether through his crochet projects or charitable good deeds, Jonah is helping to make the world a better place. Come learn more about his philanthropic work on Main Stage, when he is interviewed by Irina Shaar, host of the popular YouTube channel, FiberChats.
Speaker: Jonah Larson of Jonah Hands
Moderator: Irina Shaar of FiberChats
1:30-2:30 pm – Strength in Numbers: How Craft Guilds Empower Fiber Art Professionals Presented by the Handweavers Guild of America
Discover the advantages of joining a craft guild or member association, and how they can elevate your professional journey. Whether through networking, education, or exhibition opportunities, craft guilds provide essential resources and support for fiber art professionals at every stage of their career. Elizabeth Williamson, Executive Director of the Handweavers Guild of America will lead this insightful panel of experts, highlighting the ways these organizations can help you grow, thrive, and connect with the fiber art community.
Moderated by: Elizabeth Williamson, HGA’s Executive Director
3:00-4:00 pm – Cosplay Fashion Show and Competition
Famoré Cutlery proudly presents the second annual h+h americas Cosplay Fashion Show Competition! Join us as 24 talented contestants showcase their incredible cosplay artistry, judged by an all-star professional cosplay panel including Melanie Jasmine, Maggie Hofman, Pros and Cons Cosplay, Mike Damato, and Jordan Harper. Hosting the event are none other than cosplay icons Yaya Han and Diana ‘Binkxy’ Tolin!
With over $14,500 in cash and prizes from our amazing sponsors (Famoré Cutlery, Janome America, Oliso, WonderFil Specialty Threads, Cherrywood Fabrics, Valdani, dime by OESD, FanPowered Press, Hilos Iris/Iris Threads, and Hobbs Bonded Fibers), the competition will be fierce, the costumes spectacular, and the energy unforgettable!
4:00-5:00 pm – Cosplay Meet-the-Maker
Friday, May 9, 2025
10:30-11:30 am – How to Work Collaboratively with Brands
Whether you’re a seasoned professional or a relatively new designer, maker, cosplayer, media personality, or influencer, this is the session for you! Our panel of industry brand representatives will share how they work with creators, influencers and the media, and how best to partner with them and their brands. You’ll receive expert advice from seasoned industry pros whose roles include managing such partnerships, and you’ll have an opportunity to ask questions and swap contact info to connect with these decision-makers on future opportunities. Stay for the giveaway at the end of the session!
Speakers: Michele Muska of Oliso, Sebastian Rivera of Famore Cutlery, Erin Sampson of Aurifil Threads
Moderated by: Stephanie Hackney of Hobbs Bonded Fibers
12:15-1:15 pm – Crafting Your Brand’s Story on Social Media
1:30-2:15 pm – Membership Models for Creative Businesses
Discover how craft businesses are leveraging membership models to build loyal communities and generate recurring revenue. This panel will feature industry experts sharing insights, challenges, and success stories to help makers and entrepreneurs craft a thriving membership strategy.
Speakers: Heather Lou of Closet Core Patterns and Core Fabrics, Jenny Drew of Sew Confident, Anne Merrow of Farm & Fiber Knits
Moderated by: Felicia Lo, SweetGeorgia Yarns
Keynotes
Wednesday, May 7, 8:30-10:00 am
Presentation of the Golden Scissors Awards + State of the Industry Panel Discussion
Join us for the annual Golden Scissors Awards ceremony! The craft industry is made up of both world-class corporations and thousands of visionary small business owners, whose never-ending creativity continually lifts the entire sector to new heights. The Golden Scissors Awards are an opportunity for the industry to recognize those who have offered outstanding leadership and innovation in the past year. The 2025 award recipients will be announced live on stage!
What challenges and opportunities are craft businesses facing today? And what will tomorrow bring? In this panel discussion with industry leaders from the US and abroad, you’ll hear about developing trends, forecasts, and future outlooks for craft businesses. Come away with a global view of the crafts industry. We are all connected, from new businesses to established companies, from large corporations to independent makers, and this discussion will set the tone for what the show and the coming year will bring.
Panelists: Jakob Lang, CEO Lang Yarns; Anna Maria Parry; Adam Blumenthal, CEO Lion Brand; Lucy McDermott, owner of Stash Charlotte
Moderated by: Abby Glassenberg, Craft Industry Alliance
Thursday, May 8, 8:30-9:30
Keynote: Unicorns on the Conference Call: Living an Authentically Creative Life as an Adult with Larrie King
Larrie King, better known as Mister Larrie, is an arts and crafts content creator, design professor, and creativity enthusiast based in Orlando, Florida. His projects often center on bright colors, bold patterns, and budget-friendly basics, all geared toward making crafting and self-expression through creativity truly accessible to all.
Larrie’s professional background is centered on visual communication, teaching, and commercial design. A prolific maker and content creator, Larrie has exhibited work as a painter and illustrator at universities and galleries nationally and in his home state of Louisiana. His work as a content creator has been featured in Love Patchwork and Quilting Magazine, Simply Sewing Magazine, and Shondaland. His most recent brand partnerships include Tulip, Glowforge, Amazon, Adobe, Starbucks, and Joann Stores.
Finding joy in the creative process amongst the debris of our day-to-day can be challenging, especially as we navigate hopping on quick calls and circling back and closing loops. In this talk, content creator and design professor Mister Larrie explores the journey many of us have taken into adulthood, and how creative, artistic activity is such an important instrument for us to wield unapologetically.
Mark Hyland, Handi Quilter
Friday, May 3, 8:30-10:00 am
Presentation of Craft Industry Consumer Research: Quilting
Quilting Trends is an annual large-scale consumer research study conducted by Premier Needle Arts and Handi Quilter in collaboration with industry partners. Each year 25,000 quilters nationwide respond to survey questions that reveal important behavioral and buying trends. In this summary of the 2024 survey results you’ll learn about the profile of the average quilter today, their buying preferences, and where quilters are turning now to learn new skills. Come away with an understanding of the trajectory of the industry in comparison to years past.
Jan Hurwitz, Berroco
Friday, May 3, 8:30-10:00 am
Presentation of Craft Industry Consumer Research: Yarn
Yarn Trends is a periodic large-scale consumer research study focused on understanding consumer behavior in the yarn industry. Conducted by Berroco, the study’s findings reveal the overall size of the yarn industry now, the demographics of the average consumer in this sector, and trends in buying behavior. Learn how consumers are learning about new products, where they’re going to learn new skills and more.
