A Special Announcement from ScrapBiz

When I started ScrapBiz in September 2002, the scrapbook industry pretty much offered only two ways to start a business.

You could either become a consultant with one of the numerous direct sales companies or open a brick and mortar store. There was no "middle ground" for people wanting something less investment-intensive than a store and something more independent and flexible than becoming a direct sales consultant. After leaving I Remember When, one of the early consultant groups, I discovered by accident that I wasn't the only unhappy consultant and there were others who wanted to know how I was able to strike out on my own and sell the same products and out of this happy accident emerged the concept that became ScrapBiz.

Now fast-forward 7 years. Though there have been many changes because of the economic recession, the decrease in consumer demand for scrapbooking products and the resulting impacts on stores, manufacturers and industry trade publications, not all of the news has been bad. As long as there are photos, there will be scrappers and many scrapbooking businesses continue to thrive. However, fewer people desire to start a traditional scrapbook business and most wholesalers are now happy to sell to and support any retailer who has a business license, regardless as to whether their store is brick and mortar, online or home-based.

When I started ScrapBiz my focus was on creating tools and resources to help independent, home-based scrapbook businesses to be successful. After seven years and having nearly 1,000 people participate in ScrapBiz, I have been amazed at the success of many of our members. They are smart, savvy and are some of the best business owners and leaders in the entire industry. I credit them as being the BEST PART of the past 7 years and the people who have really made ScrapBiz the strong community that it is.

I opened ScrapBiz for business in September 2002 and, therefore, it seems fitting that I announce the closing of ScrapBiz in September. As of December 1, 2009, the ScrapBiz member support program will be discontinued.

So, what's next? There are bright spots in the industry and one of the most dynamic parts is the emergence of digital scrapbooking. I will continue to build the PhotoBookBiz brand and support the resellers. I will also keep my PhotoBooks{etc}. Additionally, I will be considering consulting and special project opportunities with both traditional and digital scrapbooking companies. So, I am not leaving the scrapbook industry entirely, but I am refocusing my efforts and scaling down the amount of time that I spend each week.

The focus of this blog will change slightly to reflect my own personal business shift, but the blog will continue to be updated with information about the changing scrapbook industry.

Thank to all those who have been kind to ScrapBiz over the last seven years. I have always appreciated your kind comments and thoughts about our business and the scrapbook industry.

Now for a little fun:

Check out the history of our site courtesy of the internet WayBack Machine:

• August 2002
• September 2002
• October 2002
• Noveber 2002 - Our first REAL website
• May 2003 - Another major website change
• May 2006 - Yet another major overhaul of our website
• ScrapBiz now