Just saw this in my Retail news feed for work, so congrats to @Dan and the rest of the Glowforge team. Given that the one store in Columbus carries proofgrade materials, hopefully this is a sign that we’ll be able to purchase materials locally, as well as in bulk from the the Glowforge store.
And, having visited that store and purchased a bunch of PG materials, the staff there who use the machine (and help customers) love it. It really creates a unique retail experience and has the potential to bring the power of Glowforge to a whole new set of people.
I has some customer visits in Columbus earlier this year, so used it as a chance to stock up on some additional materials. Prices were higher than via the GF store, but they did allow me to apply both the JoAnn coupon and a competitor coupon to different items in my purchase (no stacking of coupons, of course).
That’s good to know. Since you don’t have to pay shipping that could work out in your favor for small purchases. I don’t actually use a lot of PG materials right now, but being able to run out and grab something if I needed it could change that.
I think the most exciting part for me is that it may be the start of more maker materials being widely available. Especially materials like acrylic and thin woods, which just aren’t readily available everywhere.
I am going to check out the one in Columbus today! I may pick up some materials depending on what is in stock. My mom has a lot of the coupons. Visiting parents…
Just made the visit and picked up a few items. I was able to get a full sheet of PG medium leather for $15 after using a half off coupon. The cherry thick plywood was cheaper than ordering online and was $17. Everything else was a bit more (eg Acrylic was 6.00 instead of 3.50 online, Draftboaed was $10). Also thought I’d share some pictures so people can see what it’s like.
Hah! My collection is building, but I’m sure it’s nothing compared to yours! I figure they might have gotten wiped out by the holiday rush. I was hoping to get some thick maple but they were completely out of it. So apparently it is selling pretty well!
I think this is a great idea / concept for Glowforge. The price of the materials seems very reasonable considering you don’t have to pay shipping, and it’s available right there on the shelf. I am not sure what Joann Fabrics charges for using the laser (if anything). However, there were several people there happily crafting away in the area with the tables across from the GF- I bet they get some good usage out of it.
