Jo-Ann Fabrics to hire 30

STERLING – Making clothes or blankets will be easier for Sterling residents next year, when a Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts store is slated to open.

The store will be at 3201 E. Lincolnway, in the plaza known as Lincoln Center. CosmoProf occupied the space before moving to the northeast end of the plaza.

Kim Ewoldsen, executive director of Sauk Valley Area Chamber of Commerce, is pleased to welcome the business..

“Any time a new retailer comes in, we’re excited to have it,” she said.

Country at Heart Quilt and Gift Shop, 1910 E. Fourth St., Sterling, is the only other store in the Twin Cities area with a selection of fabrics, outside of Walmart, that Ewoldsen knows of, she said.

There are no fabric stores in Rock Falls, according to Rock Falls Chamber of Commerce President Doug Wiersema.

“I know I’ve had a lot of ladies say that there wasn’t a full fabric store, if you will, like Jo-Ann Fabrics,” he said. “I think it’s a great addition. It adds diversity to this area for shopping.”

The small selection of fabric outlets in Sterling and Rock Falls was one reason the company chose to open a store in the Twin Cities, Jo-Ann spokesman Joe Adams said.

“They try to determine the right community fit,” he said. “It’s about where we think there’s a need.”

The store will employ about 30 people, Adams said. Five full-time managers and 20 to 25 part-time employees will work at the store, he said.

The store is slated to open in late summer or early fall, Adams said.

The company’s stores sell fabrics, yarn, crochet hooks, home decor items, lamps, and craft items such as scrapbook albums.

Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts expects to open about 60 stores next year. The company opened 58 in 2011 and remodeled more than 50, Adams said.

“This is part of a pretty aggressive growth plan for the foreseeable future,” he said.

The company is not seeking a particular type of customer, Adams said.

“Everybody, through the course of their life, has a need for our items, he said. “We hope they take the time to check out our store and see for themselves.”