AC Moore Makes Two Crafty Acquisitions

Brick-and-mortar retailer of arts and crafts supplies, A.C. Moore, is making a big push into digital.

A.C. Moore’s parent firm, Nicole Crafts LLC, has revealed news of its acquisition of Blitsy. An eCommerce player, Bitsy sells arts and crafts retail products online. Nicole Crafts has also secured a “exclusive partnership” as part of a major investment in handcraft marketplace Zibbet.

According to an announcement on Tuesday (Nov. 14), the acquisition and partnership will combine A.C. Moore’s brick-and-mortar retail strength and expertise in product sourcing with Blitsy’s eCommerce track record, serving the handicraft needs of shoppers around the world.

Though it has been officially acquired, Blitsy will operate largely as an independent subsidiary of Nicole Crafts LLC and remain based in Chicago, though it will have access to A.C. Moore’s infrastructure and scale.

A.C. Moore will leverage Blitsy’s omnichannel expertise and work toward a redesign and relaunch of acmoore.com in 2018.

“We are joining the A.C. Moore family because there is a huge opportunity to utilize each other’s strengths and move faster toward our vision of delivering a truly rewarding and holistic experience to customers, teammates and brand partners,” said Ross Petersen, co-founder and CEO of Blitsy. “Together, we will drive value, excitement and innovation that the arts and crafts industry has never seen before.”

Zibbet is currently the digital home of over 50,000 independent creatives.

The platform was started — and continues to be led — by Founder and CEO Jonathan Peacock.

“We’re very excited for what we will achieve through our partnership with A.C. Moore. Our company values are tightly aligned, and I have no doubt that together we’re going to change the face of creative commerce. This is great news for the industry as a whole,” Peacock stated.

“A.C. Moore is entering a period of unprecedented growth,” added Anthony Piperno, chief marketing & merchandising officer at A.C. Moore. “These dynamic additions to our company can rapidly accelerate adoption of our proprietary product across a global audience of creative consumers and position our family as industry leaders among arts and crafts enthusiasts everywhere.”