Creative Leisure News - Memory, Paper & Stamps

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Memories Community Releases Survey Date, Plans Magazine

Demographics and media.

by Mike Hartnett (February, 2004)

Memories Community, the consumer/trade association for scrapbooking, rubber stamping, and paper crafting, recently held an online survey of its "Individual" members. The purpose was to gather information helpful to planning and organizing the association�s four annual consumer shows, Memories Expo, and the new Memories Community magazine. It also was created to collect consumer feedback that would be used to better serve individual members, and would be shared with Retail, Corporate, and Specialty Services members. Among the highlights:

Member Demographics.

98% were female. 85% were between the ages of 30 and 59. Among the 30-39, 40-49 and 50-59 age groups, tallied respondents were evenly spread, demonstrating that scrapbooking, rubber stamping, and paper crafting have attracted various generations of consumers in fairly equal numbers.

85% were married, and only 13% did not have children. 94% had attended college or trade school; 65% had college or post-graduate degrees.

53% said they work 40+ hours/week. Another 38% said they work 20-39 hours/week. Only 12% of our tallied respondents were retired.

85% enjoyed annual household incomes of over $50,000; 62% had annual household incomes of more than $75,000.

Level of Activity.

The vast majority of respondents, 92%, had attended a Memories Expo. Most already had returned for another; 61% had attended at least two Expos.

The majority of respondents were experienced scrapbookers with an obvious commitment to the hobby. 96% had been scrapping for more than a year. Among them, 24% had been scrapping for 3-4 years, 30% for 5-6 years, and 25% for seven years or more.

75% of the respondents estimated that they had spent more than $500 on scrapbooking supplies during the past 12 months; 42% had spent over $1000.

When asked how long they had belonged to Memories Community, which is a three-year-old organization, respondents� answers varied, and were spread evenly among those who had been members for more than two years, 1-2 years, and 7-12 months; 14% had joined within the last six months.

Other Points of Interest.

When given a list of eight resources and asked to identify those respondents used to learn about new scrapbook products, survey respondents said magazines (92%), retail stores (81%) and consumer shows (79%). Internet sites also were popular, being selected by 69% of the respondents.

Many Memories Community members also participate in other crafts in addition to scrapbooking: Rubber Stamping, 74% ... Paper Crafts, 46% ... Seasonal Crafts, 41% ... General Crafts, 34% ... Sewing (fashion and/or home dec), 30% ... Painting/Decorative Painting, 27% ... Needlework, 26% ... Quilting, 20% ... Knitting/Crocheting, 17% ... Jewelry Making, 10%.

New Magazine.

Memories Community also announced it would launch its own magazine this summer called, appropriately, Memories Community.

Officials say the magazine will feature informational and educational articles, project ideas and instructions, news, and product releases for scrapbooking, cardmaking, stamping, and memory-based craft projects. The Memories Community Regional Directors will contribute to the magazine with trend updates from their parts of the country.

The editor will be Michelle Howard, a 13-year veteran of industry publications. Howard worked for Craftrends for five years, and was editor of Stitcher�s World, a consumer needlework magazine, from 1996 to early 2004.

The "fringe" memory projects that reach beyond scrapbooking and card making into home dec, fashion accessories, etc., will be included in every issue and will be labeled with a "Be Creative" seal.

Memories Community will be a quarterly publication, sold on newsstands for $5.99 and distributed at all Memories Expo shows. It also will be mailed free to all Memories Community Individual, Retail, Corporate, and Special Services Members, as part of each group�s membership benefits package. Membership dues will not be raised.

The first issue of Memories Community is due this July. As a prelude to the magazine, two issues of the new Memories Community newsletter will be mailed to members and prospective members.

For more information about the magazine, the four Expo shows, or membership in Memories Community, email memories@offinger.com, visit www.memoriesexpo.com, or call 740-452-4541.

Note: To read previous entries in this Memory, Paper & Stamps section, click on the titles in the right-hand column.

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