Alternative Classes

摘要

There's a new crop of craft classrooms growing. These home parties and craft retreats are not held in stores, and often they promote products not sold at retail. It is yet to be determined if the enthusiasm they create will trickle down to benefit industry retailers, manufacturers and distributors. The industry's hottest trend, scrapbooking, was actually launched through home parties or alternative classrooms. There's no denying that the entire industry can benefit from that sort of take-off. However, we'd be na'ive if we only saw the positive in alternative classrooms. Home party organizers can effectively control manufacture and sale of products to their very loyal clientele, and their clientele could be a retailer's long-lost frequent shopper. We must ask important questions: Can in-store classes measure up to home parties? What categories are alternative classroom teachers promoting? Should stores be considering classes off-site?