April 2010 Archives

North America's Largest Arts and Crafts Specialty Retailer Selects Demandware to Help Deliver a New Online Experience for its Customers

Demandware, Inc., today announced that Michaels Stores, Inc., North America's largest arts and crafts specialty retailer, has selected the Demandware® eCommerce Platform to re-platform its website and deliver the seamless integration of content and community to its customers. The initial focus will be a site redesign with emphasis on branding, improved search and navigation, customer reviews and enhanced social networking capabilities.  

Michaels Stores, Inc. is North America's largest specialty retailer of arts, crafts, framing, floral, wall decor and seasonal merchandise for the hobbyist and do-it-yourself enthusiast. Michaels Stores owns and operates more than 1,020 Michaels stores in 49 states and Canada, and over 140 Aaron Brothers stores.

"Michaels.com will become an online destination that fosters creativity and informs purchasing decisions, which will drive online visitors back to our physical stores," said John Rowe, general manager of strategic marketing, Michaels Stores, Inc. "Demandware provides out-of-box functionality that is scalable to our growing brand and future ecommerce needs, and will help inspire our customers with a seamless cross-channel experience.'"

Michaels Stores will re-launch Michaels.com using Demandware, and will focus on providing a distinctive and social experience to its visitors. New features on the site will include enhanced customer ratings and product reviews, as well as rich media. Michaels.com will also feature a hosted social community, contests and user-generated content that will help to inspire and educate online customers.

"Michaels Stores, as a leading craft retailer, has a unique customer base that thrives in a collaborative community setting, and Demandware can provide the necessary foundation to bring that setting online," said Jamus Driscoll, vice president of marketing at Demandware. "Working with existing Michaels vendors and partners, we look forward to helping Michaels Stores expand its online presence and become a true multi-channel retailer."

Week of gift-making workshops held in all U.S. and Canada stores.

Michaels, North America's largest arts and crafts specialty retailer, announces it will host a series of Mother's Day gift-making events throughout the first week of May so that families can make personalized gifts for under $3 that Mom will treasure for years to come.

The workshops, to be held in all 1000+ U.S. and Canada stores, will each feature a free or low-cost gift project for kids of all ages:

• Saturday, May 1 (1 - 3 p.m.): Kids can create gem earrings or a glass bead bracelet to keep Mom stylish. Cost: FREE
• Sunday, May 2 (1 - 3 p.m.): Kids can personalize an ordinary coffee mug with paint markers. Cost: FREE decorating supplies with purchase of a $1.99 mug kit
• Monday, May 3 (6 - 8 p.m.): Kids can make Mom a flower corsage to complement a favorite outfit using silk flowers. Cost: FREE corsage supplies with purchase of silk flowers, $1 and up
• Tuesday, May 4 (6 - 8 p.m.): Give Mom a spa day with a home spa package wrapped in a painted clay pot. Cost: FREE painting supplies (does not include spa stuffers, $1 and up)
• Thursday, May 6 (6 - 8 p.m.): Kids can decorate a Mother's Day t-shirt with fun designs made from handprints. Cost: FREE workshop with purchase of $2.50 t-shirt
• Friday, May 7 (6 - 8 p.m.): Kids can personalize and decorate a wooden picture frame to hold a favorite memory of Mom. Cost: FREE decorating supplies with purchase of $1 frame
• Saturday, May 8 (10 a.m. - Noon): Kids can make a personalized card to wish Mom a Happy Mother's Day. Cost: FREE
• Saturday, May 8 (Noon - 1 p.m.): Kids can decorate a sweet treat at the Wilton cookie decorating event. Cost: FREE

"Our workshops are a convenient and inexpensive way for the entire family to make Mother's Day special," said Michaels' Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Paula Puleo. "Moms especially love to receive thoughtful, handmade gifts from their children."

More homemade Mother's Day gift ideas, with instructions and materials lists, can be found at www.michaels.com/mothersday. Gift cards are also available for purchase online or in stores and make great Mother's Day gifts.

For Moms who love crafting, Michaels launches its new Facebook fan page with "The Search For America's Most Creative Mom" contest starting April 27th through May 11th. Fans can nominate the special moms in their lives and share stories and photos of her creations for a chance to win a $1,000 Michaels gift card. No purchase necessary to enter or win the contest, see rules for complete details. Michaels' Facebook page will also feature heartwarming Mother's Day e-cards, quick and easy handmade gift ideas for Mother's Day, plus much more at www.facebook.com/michaels.

Mother's Day is Sunday, May 9, and that means consumers are excitedly scouring stores to come up with ideas to show mom just how wonderful she is. This year, start your search for the perfect gift by visiting PhotoWorks.com, an American Greetings Corporation (NYSE: AM) company. The popular site offers high quality gifts, all of which are customizable with your favorite digital photos, easy to create and enhanced with the creativity of American Greetings artists.

Visitors to the site this Mother's Day will find a huge collection of beautiful and stylish cards and gifts to offer something thoughtful and memorable for mom.

"We all want something beautiful for mom on Mother's Day, but we also want something special, and that's the unique combination PhotoWorks offers," said Sally Babcock, senior vice president and general manager at PhotoWorks.  "Consumers love the high quality of our products, but what makes them so popular is how easy it is to personalize them to create something that will mean the world to mom."

Combine style and thoughtfulness for a can't miss present

Want to really score some points with mom this year? Be sure to check out the new wall art and home decor collection at PhotoWorks.com. These attractive gifts will enhance any home or office, and give mom a sense of pride every time she sees them. Consumers can choose from great options including:

• Premium framed photo boards transform your pictures into an artistic poster mounted on masonite and finished with a tailored wood frame.
• Gallery wrapped canvas turns your favorite images into artwork with a fine, archival quality canvas that enhances your photos with rich color and crisp detail. This offering comes with frame and without.
• Mounted prints are a terrific lightweight alternative to framing, offering a sleek contemporary statement in any room. Each comes with a complete hanging kit for easy, do-it-yourself installation.
• Photo panels come with an easel back so that your original picture is ready to display on any desk, mantel of shelf.

Create something she will never forget

One of the best ways to share memories today is through scrapbooking. Take your hobby to the next level with the new PhotoWorks Studio Books - their easiest photo books ever.

Consumers can create a Studio Book in as little as 15 minutes with an auto-fill option, experiment with layouts and backgrounds in real time, change their font, color, and size, and mix and match expertly coordinated design elements.  Studio Books provide flexible tools and just the right amount of choices to design the perfect photo book for Mom, even for first time creators

Give her a card she'll cherish forever

Visitors to the site will find a wonderful selection of Mother's Day cards to personalize and send. The offerings include a wide variety of multi-image cards allowing you to craft a special collage sure to delight. Choose from formats that fit up to 16 photos.

In addition to the fresh formats, shoppers can also enjoy sharing elegant designs from Papyrus. These cards perfectly reflect the grace and charm that make mom so lovable.

When you visit the site, be sure to take advantage of a special offer for one free Mother's Day card with any purchase. Just enter the coupon code, CARD4MOM when prompted during checkout.

For more information on what else is new this Mother's Day, and to find store locations in your area, visit www.corporate.americangreetings.com. You can also follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/amgreetings and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AmericanGreetings.

Elmer's celebrates the 40th anniversary of Earth Day with 40 tips for becoming more environmentally friendly at home

Beginning on Earth Day, teachers across the country will begin recycling the millions of glue bottles and glue sticks their classrooms have collected since the beginning of the school year. This recycling effort is part of the Elmer's Glue Crew Recycling Program, which was created three years ago to help teachers educate children about recycling and environmental stewardship and prevent millions of glue bottles and glue sticks from going into our landfills.

To coincide with the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, Elmer's is inviting parents to get involved in the Elmer's Glue Crew program through the "40 Days of Earth-Friendly Living." The campaign kicks-off on Earth Day and offers an eco-friendly tip or idea every day through the end of May. The tips are designed to allow parents and children to participate together and to give teachers more ideas for expanding their Earth Day curriculum. To participate, parents and teachers can download the "40 Days" calendar at www.ElmersGlueCrew.com or sign up to receive tips on Twitter or Facebook. The tips include:

Day 17: Walk instead of drive

Leave the car at home and walk to the store or a friend's house

Day 26: Don't run the water

When you brush your teeth, turn off the water when you're not using it

"Through Elmer's Glue Crew, we've been able to provide teachers with recycling information, student contests and curriculum ideas. The 40 Days of Earth-Friendly Living is a way for us to involve parents and help teachers extend their education into the home," said Mary Beth Cowardin, senior marketing manager for Elmer's Products. "Our goal with this program has always been to develop a mindset at an early age for being environmentally conscious."

Last year, nearly 1.2 million school-age children participated in Elmer's Glue Crew to recycle 2 million glue bottles and glue sticks. Beginning on Earth Day, classrooms will start recycling their collections by submitting the empties to Walmart or TerraCycle.  To recognize their efforts, Elmer's honors one classroom that has gone above and beyond to incorporate environmental stewardship and recycling into their daily activities with the Elmer's Glue Crew Grand Prize.

Elmer's® Products, Inc., headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, has been a trusted brand and industry leader for more than 60 years. Elmer's produces a variety of well-known adhesives, arts and crafts, educational and office products developed to provide project solutions and inspire people to create, build and learn for life.  Elmer's also markets the number one instant adhesive in the U.S., Instant Krazy Glue®, and X-ACTO®, a leader in innovative cutting blades, knives, and office supplies. For more information, visit www.elmers.com.

It's not to late to make some fun Easter crafts.


MarthaStewart.com has a bunch of great ideas like:

Floral Motif Eggs
Glitter Eggs
Spring Centerpieces
Speckled Egg Boxes

Have fun and Happy Easter!