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Quilting and knitting overlap more than you might think — and that crossover is exactly why yarn keeps coming up as a natural next category for quilt shops. Adding it to your product mix sounds appealing, until you dive into the details.
Vendor minimums, unfamiliar SKUs, display space you don’t have, and the very real possibility of buying 200 skeins of a colorway that doesn’t move are all enough to make any quilt shop owner hesitate. But every time one of your customers drives across town for yarn instead of stepping through your doors, that’s a transaction that didn’t happen in your store.
So the question isn’t whether yarn belongs in your shop — it’s whether you can add it without the extra hassle.
This blog will show you how to test the yarn product category thoughtfully, with a small footprint, a clear timeline, and the right systems in place to determine whether it’s working before you commit to making it permanent.
Why Quilt Shop Product Categories Are Evolving (and What That Means for Yarn)
The craft retail industry experienced a substantial shift in the aftermath of Joann Fabrics’ bankruptcy filing. Customers got used to having the retail giant available to grab quilting fabrics, yarn, and a pack of knitting needles all in one trip. Those customers are now looking for a new home base.
Adding yarn to your product mix can help you win over some of those shoppers without a go-to craft store. And that’s not the only advantage of carrying yarn in your shop.
Yarn behaves very differently from bolt fabric. There’s no cutting, no fractional yardage, and no waste from an awkward end-of-bolt cut. Skeins are small, stackable, and naturally replenishable. In a business where inventory management is constant work, that’s a major advantage.
That said, yarn has its own risks. Vendor minimums can push you toward carrying more SKUs than you intended. Colorways behave differently in yarn than they do in fabric, increasing your risk of investing in lines that don’t move. And if you’re unfamiliar with fiber types and weights, it’s easy to overbuy in the wrong direction.
But the opportunity outweighs the risk for most stores. Yarn is high-margin, requires minimal display footprint, and targets a significant number of your existing customers.
With these advantages in mind, let’s cover the most effective ways to test this new product category without sinking your margins.
Related Read: How To Stock Your Quilt Store: 10 Best Fabric Wholesale Manufacturers
5 Easy Ways To Test New Quilt Shop Categories
Adding a new product category to your quilt shop sounds exciting — until you’re staring at a shelf of yarn that isn’t moving. But it doesn’t have to be a gamble. These five strategies let you test the waters with minimal investment, so you can make decisions backed by real numbers, not guesswork.
1. Start With What Your Customers Are Already Telling You
Before you place your first yarn order, do a little detective work with your existing customers.
Start by simply listening. Are customers asking if you carry crochet hooks or chatting about their knitting projects during quilting classes? These offhand comments are true market research, and if you and your staff are hearing this kind of feedback regularly, it’s a signal that yarn might be a fit for your store.
Next, look at your sales data. Examine your non-fabric revenue, like notions, quilt accessories, and kits. Customers who are already buying those items have proven they’re willing to spend beyond bolt fabric.
Finally, watch for buying patterns that suggest a cross-craft mindset. For example:
- A customer who buys scissors, fabric, and a beginner pattern together
- Someone who consistently picks up embroidery floss or hand-quilting thread
- Regulars who browse your notions wall for as long as they browse your fabric
These customers are more than just quilters — they’re crafters, and they tend to have more than one project in progress at all times. You don’t always need a formal survey to validate yarn as a category. You need to pay attention to what’s already happening at your counter.
2. Build a Small, Low-Risk Yarn Test
The biggest mistake shops make when testing a new category is going too big, too fast. Resist that impulse.
Instead, start with one fiber type in one weight. A worsted cotton or a wool-cotton blend is a safe bet for most quilt shops. From there, build a tight edit of colorways around your current seasonal palette. Four to six colors gives you plenty to work with.
Here are a few things to look for as you source:
- Vendors with low opening order minimums
- Fibers that cross over naturally with quilting, like cotton, wool, and wool blends
- Colorways that already coordinate with the fabric you have on the floor
Set a clear window — like one quarter — and define what success looks like before you begin. Your goal might be selling through 70% of what you’ve ordered, hitting a specific revenue target, or noting a boost in foot traffic. That way, when the test is over, the answer is clear.
Related Read: 24 Key Retail KPIs To Track in Your Fabric Shop
3. Fit Yarn Into Your Display Without Overhauling Your Store
You don’t need to rethink your entire floor plan to test yarn. A half-gondola or a single display table near your seasonal fabric section is all you need.
The most important merchandising rule for yarn in a quilt shop mirrors what works for fabric: Organize by color story, not by fiber or weight. Your customers are largely visual, and they respond better to a cohesive palette than a shelf sorted by fiber type.
From there, think about how yarn fits into your existing merchandising instincts. Consider adding notions like needles, stitch markers, and a small project bag to create a beginner’s knitting bundle, for example.
Remember: Start small, merchandise it well, and let the results tell you what to do next.
4. Protect Yourself From Inventory Risk With the Right Systems
SKUs multiply fast when it comes to yarn. One colorway in three weights across four colors is already 12 SKUs. Add a second colorway, and you’re at 24. Without the right systems behind you, a small yarn test can quietly become an inventory management problem.
Here are a few habits that keep your inventory manageable:
- Track yarn as its own category.
- Set reorder points.
- Run category-level sales reports at the end of each month to catch slow movers early.
Vendor catalogs are another place where the right tools save real time. When catalog data is automatically updated, you can see what’s available, check current pricing, and make reorder decisions without waiting for your next rep visit.
A modern point of sale (POS) system like Like Sew includes inventory tools and preloaded vendor catalogs that are built for exactly this kind of small, intentional test run. You can segment yarn as its own category, monitor performance against your other product lines, and make better decisions about whether to expand or scale back.
5. Introduce Yarn to Your Regulars Without a Big Commitment
You don’t have to put yarn on the shelf and hope for the best. If you want to set your new category up for success, you need a plan to introduce it to your regulars.
If you already run a block-of-the-month (BOM) program, consider offering a monthly knitting club. If customers sign up, curate a small selection each month. A subscription model works well because you know your stock will move before you place the order — and your customers get to build community with other crafters in the process.
Classes are another powerful entry point. A beginner’s knitting class using yarn you carry is a great way to move stock and build customer loyalty. Students who learn a new craft with your product are far more likely to come back and restock with you the next time they need supplies.
And the class itself provides useful data. Strong sign-ups mean strong category interest, whereas low enrollment might signal that your customers aren’t ready for yarn yet.
The kit approach is perhaps the lowest-risk option of all. Bundle a single skein with a simple beginner pattern and a set of notions and price it as a complete starter kit.
Kits remove the intimidation factor for customers who are curious about a new craft. Plus, they let you move yarn at a higher margin than selling skeins individually.
Related Read: 12 Essential Cross-Selling and Upselling Strategies for Fabric Shops
The Best New Quilt Shop Category Is One You Can Actually Manage
Yarn can absolutely work in a quilt shop — you just need the right approach. With these strategies, you can test a new product category to ensure there’s enough customer interest before you make a significant inventory commitment.
Test small, track carefully, and let your data tell you when to expand and when to pull back. If you want to accomplish all of this without manual tracking and stress, the right tools set you up for success.
Like Sew gives you the inventory tools, vendor catalogs, and sales reporting features you need to test a new category and measure the results.
Ready to add new categories without the guesswork? Request a demo today.
