Aug 26, 2008

Lies, D@mn Lies and Statistics Part 2

This is part two of my ongoing "fun with statistics" commentary. If you missed Part One, you can read it HERE.

Now, can somebody explain THIS to me? It doesn't take a Rocket Scientist to figure out the Scrapbook Industry has had a bumpy ride for the last 7 years. This article is about how many stores in California are folding. YET, supposedly nearly 30 percent of U.S. households participate in scrapbooking and it's INCREASED nearly 9% since 2001. So, explain to me how we can increase the number of scrapbooking households dramatically and STILL be in trouble?

People might be buying less, but if there are THAT MANY more new scrappers, then why are stores closing right and left?

The numbers just don't add up. I don't believe that nearly 30% of households scrapbook. In my cul-de-sac of 10 homes, I am the ONLY scrapbooker. According to this, two of my neighbors are hiding their addiction to paper and scissors from the rest of us.

Yes, I'm sure some neighborhoods in Utah would shame any woman caught without card stock in her house, but there are other places in this country where the word "scrapbooking" would cause people to ask, "Is that even a word?"

The industry is most likely STILL growing, but not at the pace mentioned and certainly not at the level claimed. Otherwise, all these stores wouldn't be closing their doors.

Crazy...

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Several - you had the people that were involved because it was the current "fad" of the moment (this might have been thousands). You have others that really "stocked-up" and now no longer buy as frequently as they did.
You have those that went through a period of getting everything done, that now they are caught up aren't buying as much.
And then there is the digital scrapper that seldom uses traditional supplies anymore.
Another factor are the numbers of folks that are buying on-line only. This seems to increase as the LSS disappear.