Tacony Corporation announced today that it has sold Nancy’s Notions to Missouri Star Quilt Company.
“We had been looking for a strategic partner with the necessary resources and expertise to help take Nancy’s Notions to the next level,” Tacony CEO Kristi Tacony Humes said in a press release. “We feel Missouri Star Quilt Company provides Nancy’s Notions with a unique opportunity for growth because of its success and experience in both the quilting and sewing markets.” The sale went into effect on May 27.
Tacony Corporation is a leading distributor and manufacturer of consumer and commercial goods.
Tacony bought Nancy’s Notions from founder Nancy Zieman in 2003. Zieman founded the company 41 years ago from her basement. Its first warehouse was in a chicken shack on the Zieman family farm. Nancy’s Notions grew into a 100,000 square foot warehouse that included a retail store and annual retreat. Zieman hosted the longest-airing sewing series on television, Sewing with Nancy on Wisconsin Public Television, which first aired in 1982. She passed away in November 2017 after a two-year battle with bone cancer.
“We are excited to add the Nancy’s Notions brand to the Missouri Star Quilt Company family,” said Missouri Star CEO Michael Mifsud in the press release.
“Nancy Zieman was a great inspiration to so many and we are excited to honor her legacy and also introduce her love of sewing to a new generation of creators.”
Missouri Star Quilt Company currently offers one of the largest selections of precut fabrics in the world and ships thousands of packages to customers across the globe every day. Their YouTube channel has over 650,000 subscribers and almost 200 million views and new quilting tutorials are published every week. Their Hamilton, MO headquarters have become a tourist destination, attracting quilters from near and far who want to come experience the “Disneyland of Quilting” with 12 themed quilt shops, a retreat center and education center. What started out as a family business has grown to include an entire community.
Jenny Doan and Nancy Zieman.
Over the years, Tacony had whittled down Nancy’s Notions. In July 2019 Tacony shut down the Nancy’s Notions retail store in Beaver Dam citing competitive pressure, presumably from ecommerce. They also discontinued the annual Sewing Weekend retreat and warehouse sale. In the years leading up to those closures, many quilters and sewists felt that Tacony had mismanaged Nancy’s Notions, allowing the once-beloved brand to decline. Tacony’s leadership of Nancy’s Notions was described by some as “joyless” and “lacking in enthusiasm.”
Perhaps Missouri Star will be a better home for Nancy’s Notions. Nancy’s Notions was founded by a television star who was best known for demonstrating sewing techniques in a friendly, approachable way. Missouri Star’s Jenny Doan has a similar mission and has won similar acclaim.
According to Humes, this sale is not a sign of financial duress for Tacony. “Our businesses remain strong and this divestiture will help us focus on the customer experience across our core brands as we move forward,” said Humes in the press release. “Delivering exceptional customer experience is our top priority and Tacony continues to challenge status quo to ensure we stay true to the values that have made us successful for over 74 years.”
Congratulations….
Nancy would approve as she was very forward focused.
So happy for the change and new partnership with Missouri quilts. I’m looking forward to shopping.
I think this is a “win win”. Nancy can now rest easy knowing her legacy is in good hands, will go forward with enthusiasm and gusto.
What a lovely sentiment! You brought tears to my eyes.
SUre hope I get sewing with Nancy catalogs they may just rename it I ordered from it often
Please keep the catalog. Much easier for me to buy.
Does this mean there will be a retail store in Beaver Dam again? Or is MSQC just carrying Nancy’s brand?
I so hope more then quilting is continued. Hard to find so many of the sewing fabrics and notions Nancy carried.
Congrates good home for Nancy notions
Congratulations on acquiring “Nancy’s Notions”. Hoping you keep Nancy Ziemans memory alive. She was a great lady. I watched her PBS TV shows for years. Nancy brought talent out of so many of us by her teaching methods that were so easy to follow. I have thought of her often since her passing.
I am thrilled that, like so many others, Nancy Z.’s line will be partnered with a fellow, and current Queen of quilting, Jenny D.
Do you have baby lock Anna 20a thread spool holders?
Please contact Tacony directly. We don’t sell any products.
Nancy and I were college roommates at UW- Stout Menomonie. We remained best friends until she passed. Not a day goes by that a don’t think of her. I miss her terribly. She never let success and stardom change her. She was the kindest person I’ve ever met.
It’s so lovely to hear from you. Thank you for sharing this memory of Nancy.
I miss Nancy. I still watch her show even though I’ve seen each episode many times. I’m looking forward to see what MSQC does with the business.
Love watching Sewing With Nancy on Saturdays. Hope this continues.
This should be a good change. It was never the same after being sold…Jenny Doan will be exceptional at promoting Nancy’s techniques and products.
There are quite a few of Nancy’s dvds I had wanted to purchase but I doubt that will happen now. Jenny Doan won’t want the competition. I prefer Nancy and bought from her for many years.
This is WONDERFUL news!!!
Always enjoyed watching Nancy and ordered several items over the years. She would approve this sale.
Love Jenny & Missouri quilt
I think it’s great for all involved.
Nancy was a super lady and teaching skills has taught many of us from ground up.
Jenny is a perfect person to carry on. She too has the same personality and is uplifting and encouraging to so many.
Happy to hear this news! MSQC is a perfect fit for sharing the educational videos and Nancy Zeiman’s products. Continued luck in expanding your business and keeping us all sewing. Congratulations!
This will be a good home for Nancy’s notions. I believe Nancy would approve.
I always watched “Sewing with Nancy” and watch everything available from Jenny Doan and Missouri Star Quilt company. Hope we get newsletters from Missouri Star with new tips and patterns. I followed Jenny’s instructions for face masks as well as other things she showed us how to do!!
I always watched “Sewing with Nancy” and watch everything available from Jenny Doan and Missouri Star Quilts which I can’t wait to visit!!
I met Nancy about 1999 or 2000 in Paducah Kentucky at the quilt show. So very nice and approachable. So very glad for this move in the positive direction.
I just miss seeing Nance, enjoyed her so so much. I hope this is a good move and the prices don’t go sky high.
So happy to hear this. I hope Nancy’s legacy will be honored and treated better by the new owners than it has been sine she passed.
I agree. Loved to order front Nancy’s Notions, but after her death was never the same. It was great to get a “new needle” In each order. Ensured that I always had a fresh/sharp needle to sew with. Will MSQC maybe continue this? I very very frequently order from MSQC and have always had great service. Love watching Jenny, Misty,and Natilie. Keep up the great work. I’m sure Nancy Z would be glad to be associated with MSQC.
**from**
I’m sure Nancy would approve and be proud
CONGRATULATIONS! 🎉💓
I remember Nancy and her videos.
May she truly RIP knowing you’ll continue honoring her and her work.
Thank you MSQC.
I cannot tell you how much my heart loves this! What a treasure MSQC has acquired!!
Would like to receive a current Nancy Notions catalog
I miss Nancy so much. I enjoyed her tour of Grapevine Texas and her interesting instruction of machine embroidery.
This is great news. I feel Tacony did Nancy’s Notions a disservice. Destroyed a great brand that Nancy built. Can hardly wait to see what MSQC will do with it!! Congratulations.
I hope that MSQ will re establish Nancy’s presence in Beaver Dam and the surrounding communities here in WI. Attending seeing weekend was a big part of my teen years. It, and the retail store sales are dearly missed.
This is good news, so happy for 2 of my favorite quilting stores.
I AM SO HAPPY! I was saddened by Nancy’s store closing! I think she would approve of this!
Please keep the catalog as that is how I have ordered for at least 30 years..84 and still sewing….thanks!!!!
This is just brilliant! Wonderful news!
This is great news! I hope Missouri Star gives us the opportunity to rewatch her videos. Also maybe there will be a revival of the Nancy’s Notions brand!
Congratulations Jenny and company! Please bring back the “Nancy” feel of the company.
Very excited. MSQC has a phenomenal team in place from the start and love seeing the new kids coming up along under expert tutelage. Sew on!
Nancy’s Notions couldn’t have been sold to a better place/person. Look forward to the future of the company. I enjoy doing business with Missouri Star!
I’m sure Nancy is pleased with this endeavor. Please keep Nancy alive.
I find this to be very sad news. I don’t spend money at MSQC and I will no longer buy anything they have acquired.
So far I’ve read all of the responses and yours is the only one I’ve seen that is so negative. How can you not be glad that Missouri Star has acquired Nancy’s Notions? Both Nancy and Jenny started their business from the ground up. Both worked very hard to grow their company. Both are American made businesses, and we should all be very proud of that. I’m sure Nancy’s Notions will be in much better hands now than they have been since Nancy passed. I couldn’t be happier for both Nancy’s Notions and Missouri Star.
Can’t think of a better match! Congratulations!
I wish you every success and wish there was a similar company based in the UK.
Great news! Please open a satellite store in Nancy’s building in Beaver Dam. her passing has left a huge emptiness in the sewing/quilting community of Wisconsin.
This is great news!!
Bought lots from Nancy but I know she is smiling knowing her friend will carry on her legacy Thankyou Congratulations will look forward to hopefully meeting you in September for your Anniversary.Year. Take Care be safe And Healthy
Congratulations!! Beautiful picture of Jenny and Nancy. Look forward to visiting your area one of these days!
This all seems good to me. I miss Nancy’s shows so much but I believe Jenny will honor her love for sewing and teaching. Great match up. Jenny is a wonderful person just like Nancy was.
I doubt I buy much Missouri Star Quilt does not have sales like Nancys notions did, I am on a fixed income and cannot always afford MissoirStar prices
I am relieved that this happened. Nancy was such a warm, giving person who touched all of us for many decades. I am sure Missouri Quilt will treat her legacy well and not forget the limited income sewers by bringing back her thoughtful sales and products. I would just like to add that organizations like Tacony Corporation have no “business” buying up well established businesses they know nothing about, ruining them, and tossing them aside. You see this happen often these days and it is just so unfortunate. Well, the return of Nancy’s Notions will be well received and we former customers will be happy to check it out at Missouri Quilt while the brains of Tacony Corp. seek their next acquisition they know nothing about!
This is great news – so glad to see Nancy’s Notions being carried forward.
I am so happy I love MSQ company – Jenny and all of the creative individuals who work everyday to promote sewing to EVERYONE.
I am also a great fan of Nancy and can’t wait to see what this ingenious company does to merge the two cultures.
Congratulations.
In my opinion, there were 3 sides to Nancy’s Notions as far as merchandise was concerned. There was quilting, machine embroidery and fashion sewing. I really hope Missouri Quilt will honor all these areas as I’m sure there are others in addition to myself that loved Nancy’s Notions because we could find items there that we could not find elsewhere. This includes fashion fabric, fashion patterns, embroidery patterns, embroidery thread and on and on. All this in addition to all the quilting supplies and fabrics. I agree with others that after it was sold to Tacony, it really went downhill. The catalog was terrible and then I didn’t receive it at all. Please, Missouri Quilt, bring back Nancy’s Notions as it used to be. It was wonderful. Thank you.
I am trusting that the part of Nancy’s Notions that stayed in Beaver Dam will still be there. And also the Wisconsin EXPO every September in Madison which is sponsored by Wisconsin Public Television and Nancy’s Notions will continue. It is the best Quilt Show I have ever been to. I order from both Nancy’s Notions and Missouri Star Quilt Company.
I order from both also and had a tour of Nancy’s notions once when in Beaver Dam. Quilt Expo is one of the best shows I have been to. Hopefully Jenny will have a booth there also. What wonderful ladies both Nancy and Jenny are.
Thank you Lord! I am so happy with this change. So– Congrats!!! Looking forward to visiting .
This is excellent. I look forward to the return of Nancy’s Notions as a star in the sewing and quilting industry. Nancy knew the people she was presenting to and built her business around that idea.
This is super exciting news!!!
Please bring back the warehouse sale and sewing weekend in Beaver Dam, and continue to support and sponsor the quilt expo!
Love Missouri star tutorials and the shops in Hamilton, MO.
I agree sewing weekend was always something to look forward to during the long Wisconsin winters and Quilt Expo was always a wonderful way to end the summer months, so please please bring these events back.
Mary Lynn
Does this mean there may be a new Nancy’s Notions building in Hamilton? That would be such an incredible tribute to Nancy Zieman. This purchase by MSQC is great news!
Great News!!!!! Will I still be on the mailing list?
Thanks for letting us know! I’m so glad that you have done this. Loved Nancy and looks like I’ll love you too!
Was honored to meet Nancy Zieman and attend a sewing workshop she taught. I hope MSQC will carry on with her name. Perhaps a yearly quilt show will be started in Missouri at MSQC, again always remembering Nancy. I know Jenny will do a terrific job.
I am an avid Missouri Star shopper
I still watch Nancy’s show on Saturday mornings and have lots of her products. I feel M.S. will be an excellent fit for her prestigious company.
Wonderful news. My mom and Nancy were my inspiration for learning and the love of sewing
This is such good news. Both of these women are pioneers and stars in their realms ! I would love to see the catalogs continue as not everyone has access to technology! Go with God!
After Nancy passed, I continued to support the workers, town, and store with online purchases. No warning–just gone. She valued that town–hope new company will too. Also, enjoyed the annual quilt expo.
Thank you, MSQC. May Nancy’s legacy live on. ❤️
I hope I will still be on the mailing list, loved the store!!!
Congratulations MSQC! What a great acquisition for your company! I, like many others, loved Nancy Zieman’s true love of sewing and heartfelt programming. Her notions and eventual store and sewing expo that engaged the whole town was just wonderful. I think Jenny Doan and her family and team members represent a similar enthusiasm about quilting. I highly hope that she will include sewing, embroidery, and other needle arts in her offerings in the future. We are starving for outlets other than the big box store that is left out in the marketplace. Wishing you the very best of luck with this new acquisition! Looking forward to the future!
I am looking for the STAR Thimble Container in Aqua. Thx
We’re not affiliated with Nancy’s Notions. Please reach out to them directly. Thank you.
Does this mean that Missouri Star will be on PBS in place of Sewing with Nancy?
I don’t know the answer to this. You could reach out to them directly to inquire.
You know I watched Nancy faithfully, I enjoyed her show much and I also learned a lot.
But what I really want to tell you is that I cried like baby when I found out. And she had been gone for two or three years. I did miss a few of her shows so it had to be at one of those times. I’m sure it must have been announced. I’m still very sad about this. She always inspired me to sew.
I lost my daughter seven years ago and sewing is my therapy thanks to Nancy. I’m not great at it but really love it.
So congratulations and I want to say that Jenny is so much like her with so much compassion and enthusiasm .
I would like to find the “wrist” pin cushion that Nancy used on the intro to her PBS show. It would be a great help to me.
Little slow on getting the news but what wonderful news. Tacony was a huge disappointment and dropped so many lines and activities that Nancy worked so hard to build. It seemed that it turned into total sewing machine focus. Used to live not far from Beaver Dam and went there frequently, and talked with Nancy many times. She is greatly missed, and Jenny Doan is a good down to earth successor. The store is missed, as it was such a “destination” for so many.
Sorry to hear about the sale. I’m not too impress with the way Missouri does their teaching of making quilts. Nancy did a much better job. She explained in very slow detail and made it look so simple. I dont get that with Missouri Star.
Congratulations. I love Missouri Star and had watched sewing with Nancy for many years. I’m sure she would be happy to see what she started continue on.
Missouri Star is a good, well like family business. Nancy would approve. I’m sure Jenni Doan will do the right thing for “Nancy’s” to keep it alive and prosperous.