The Yarn Consumer Survey details yarn shopping trends over the last year. Online yarn shopping continues to trend up post pandemic.
At h+h Americas 2024 Jan Hurwitz, General Manager of Berroco, presented a summary of the results of the Consumer Yarn Survey. This survey is in its second year and its goal is to gain better knowledge across a broad range of knitters, crocheters and yarn enthusiasts about demographics (including age, gender, and employment), buying habits, sources of inspiration and pattern selection, and frequency of knitting and crochet at all skill levels. Over 7,000 consumers responded to this year’s survey.
According to the survey results, the average age of yarn consumers is 58 and the median age is 59. The vast majority of yarn consumers, 98%, are female and their average household income is between $72,000-$91,500. 48% of yarn consumers are retired and 31% are employed full-time.
When it comes to specific crafts, 73% crochet while 84% knit, but 58% do both. 69% of knitters also crochet, while 79% of crocheters also knit.
53% of knitters knit every single day, but only 27% of crocheters say they crochet every single day. Clothing items, accessories, and home décor were the most popular types of projects (this question was not broken out by knitting or crochet). Baby, toys and amigurumi, and menswear made up the remaining types of projects.
Young yarn consumers start, and finish, far more projects than any other demographic. Respondents under the age of 18 report starting an average of 30 crochet projects and finishing 24, or 35 knitting projects and finishing 27 (depending on their craft of choice), annually.
Shopping behavior changes from the pandemic are still present when it comes to how yarn consumers are buying yarn today. On average, respondents are making slightly more purchases online than in-store, and they’re spending more per purchase when shopping online. 56% report that they buy more yarn online now than they did last year. Still, 38% of respondents say they prefer shopping for yarn in person.
It’s notable that younger makers, especially, are shopping online. Yarn consumers in the 25-34 age bracket spent an average of $411 online shopping for yarn in the last year, for example, versus $215 in stores. And the youngest age bracket (under 18) spent $310 online and $226 in store, spending just $119 less overall than the 55-64 age bracket, so the yarn industry’s youngest consumers are definitely spending their disposable income on their hobby.
When it comes to preferred type of fiber, the survey didn’t break out respondents by knitting or crochet, but wool yarns were most popular followed by blended fibers, synthetic yarn, cotton yarn, and just 2% of respondents preferred luxury yarns.
Consumers overwhelmingly prefer to get their patterns from online marketplaces (64%) and online stores (19%) and 70.4% say they get their inspiration primarily from Ravelry.
Abby Glassenberg
Abby co-founded Craft Industry Alliance and now serves as its president. She’s a sewing pattern designer, teacher, and journalist. She’s dedicated to creating an outstanding trade association for the crafts industry. Abby lives in Wellesley, Massachusetts.