F+W has sold Keepsake Quilting, the quilt shop and catalog business, to Steelcity LLC, a family-owned business owned by the Kimelman family of North Carolina. The Kimelmans also own Swatchcraft and Pineapple Fabrics. The sale was announced this week. The Keepsake Quilting shop is located in Center Harbor, New Hampshire, and the catalog business has its headquarters a half mile away in Moultonborough.
Judy and Russ Sabanek founded Keepsake Quilting as a quilt catalog business in 1986. They opened the retail shop in 1988. The couple sold the company to New Track Media in 2007. New Track was acquired by F+W Media in 2014.
I reached out to John Bolton, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Crafts Group at F+W for comment on the acquisition, but he did not respond to my email.
Swatchcraft is the fabric industry leader in producing sample cards and swatch cards. It’s a fourth generation company started by current CEO Rick Kimelman’s grandfather in Long Island City, New York. The company relocated to North Carolina in the early 1990s order to be closer to the textile manufacturing plants it served. As precut fabrics gained popularity Kimelman realized his company was well positioned to expand into that business. They opened a second facility focused exclusively on cutting and distributing precuts and today they contract with many of the major quilting fabric companies including Andover, Windham, and Jaftex.
Kimelman started Pineapple Fabrics, a precut quilt kit company, to keep the factory busy during the lull periods. His wife, artist Dot Kimelman, selects fabrics from various manufacturers and collections to kit together. Pineapple does 20 consumer shows a year, keeping the Kimelmans in close touch with the buying behavior of quilters.
In August of 2017 Kimelman says Keepsake reached out to him when the vendor they were using to cut and pack kits for the catalog got backed out and they asked Swatchcraft for help. Swatchcraft began fulfilling about 20% of Keepsake’s kit orders. When he heard that F+W was looking to sell Keepsake he leaped at the chance. By all accounts, employees and customers are excited, too.
Yelp reviews of Keepsake Quilting reveal years of customer disappointment with both the in-store experience and the ecommerce shop. Customer service is described as disinterested at best and shipping delays are said to be as long as two months with no notifications or updates.
Cheryl Millett is the vice president of merchandising at Keepsake and has worked at the company for 21 years. “F+W fully admits today that they didn’t understand the catalog business,” Millett said in a phone call on Tuesday. “It’s just something that they struggled with over the years.”
Kimelman concurred. “They were not very hands on at all. You can see it in what happened to the store. You can see it in how the systems are antiquated here. They just did not put a lot of time, or money, or effort into this business,” he said.
F+W has experienced leadership upheavals over the last few years. In January F+W ousted it’s executive team and rounds of layoffs followed, leaving staff with feelings of uncertainty. “We were just left in the dark,” Millett said. In August F+W attempted to make Keepsake into an entirely digital company, doing away with mailing out catalogs. Millett says that effort failed, and the company backtracked. “Maybe other people at F+W know what the direction of that company is. We do not.”
Kimelman does have a clear plan for Keepsake and he’s already taken action. Immediate changes in the catalog business include returning to mailing it out five times a year and getting rid of the $1.99 charge for the catalog. Bringing fulfillment in-house will also dramatically reduce shipping time.
On the retail side the store will now be open seven days a week. The store is located in New Hampshire’s lake region, near Lake Winnipesaukee, a popular vacation destination. “F+W made the decision to have the store open four days a week. While we were up here visiting we could see there were carloads of people that had drive hours to go to the store, just to find it was closed,” Kimelman said.
He also plans to raise the standard for customer service and to expand the product selection. “Right now you walk in there, if you aren’t there to buy fabric there’s absolutely nothing else for you to buy. And 90% of it is fabric off the bolt.” Soon there will be kits, precuts, and a wide selection of gift items as well, he said.
Reaction to the announcement of the acquisition on Facebook was overwhelmingly positive. “Welcome to the Kimelman family! I was once a loyal KQ shopper/visitor but over the years became disillusioned with the inventory of KQ as well as service,” said one commenter. “Having an impressive number of bolts does not necessarily make a shop a good shop. Hope to visit early this summer and rediscover KQ!”
Great job Rick
The news about keepsake quilting is so good. I used to love them but stopped shopping there
I think that John Bolton is the former husband of Patricia “Pokey” Bolton. She is an art quilter and is the former host of the Quilting Arts tv show on public television. Robin
Yes, that is true.
Abby, thank you for investigating and letting us know what is going on. This was an awesome article! I have dealt with Keepsake Quilting as a designer, with two quilts made into kits. My second project was kitted by Quilters Paradise in CA. I have never heard about the Kimelman family but will remember their name now. Thank you again.
Haven’t received any of the next squares for my block of the month for 2 months. The pattern is Forest Floor. What’s the plan? Thanks , Jeri Johanning
Hi Jeri, We are a trade association. This is an article about Keepsake Quilting’s new ownership, but we aren’t affiliated with Keepsake Quilting. If you have a question about a block of the month that you’re participating in with Keepsake Quilting you’ll need to reach out to their customer service department for assistance. Thank you.
The family buying Keepsake Quilting probably was the best thing for them. KQ was a great group of people. After the upheaval the first time after purchasing with all the good executive team and then the customer service gone made then with no direction. Best wishes Keepsake Quilting!
I am in search of the RED PICKUP TRUCK PANEL!!!! Is there a chance it is available???
Hi June,
You’ll need to reach out to Keepsake Quilting directly. We are not affiliated with them. Thank you.
I knew something was amiss. The original owners, the Sabeneks, had a great catalog, offering superb fabrics and kits. I use to purchase from them. I keep getting catalogs but nothing interests me. I have my tools, so I don’t need more. So sorry to see what was once a wonderful resource, diminish.
I just requested a catalog can’t wait to return to the keepsake family
Trust me, from what I hear the Kimelmans don’t know much either and the future is sketchy here.
You were 100% correct. Future no longer sketchy. There is no future. Sad to see what once was a great place run into the ground.
Tell me more. I tried to access the online store and got…nothing. Blank screen! WAAAAAA!
Are you looking for the Keepsake Quilting online shop? https://www.keepsakequilting.com/
They’re looking for the real Keepsake Quilting.
Disgusting – they destroyed that company. Not nice people at all – cheap
It wasnt F&W that caused the problem. F&W was a wonderful company before New York based financial investors took over and destroyed F&W. I am glad Keepsake Quilting is doing better. I was privileged to work with some those good people.
Hi,I wonder if someone can give me the new emailadress for the people who have taken over Keepsake quilting?Thank you.
Sue in Sweden
Bought a bomb 2 yrs ago, very difficult, reached out for assistance got nothing . It is the bel Canto quilt. It was expensive would appreciate assistance. Joan jahill1941@gmail.com. beautiful quilt need help desperately. Thanks
We are not affiliated with Keepsake Quilting and can’t help you with customer service issues. Please contact Keepsake Quilting directly.
Hi Jill, check on your directions for a designer. There may be a contact email or website for that person. Reach out to them directly for assistance. It would be more likely for them to help you than Keepsake. Best wishes.
Interesting article. Thank you for writing it Abby.
I have tried shopping at KQ several times over the past 8-10 years, now I know why I have been disappointed. Now, fast forward August/Sept 2022 when ALL fabric retailers have had 2 years to practice fulfilling orders and I tried KQ again for a BOM. Ugh. so many customer service requests and then I see (on FB) that delivery to some is quick, while others are waiting 2 and 3 WEEKS from the time credit cards are charged.
I would think that the current owners would have changed and fixed past poor performance. Apparently not so much.