Explore the US arts and crafts market with this report. With increasing participation as consumers realize the value of arts and crafts, now is the time to capitalize on demand. Below, we’ve summarized the key topics analyzed and provided hand-selected findings from the report.
Key Topics Analyzed
- Crafter demographics and how they see themselves.
- Types of projects consumers worked on in the past 12 months and five-year trend.
- Crafting motivations and barriers to participation.
- Retailers for purchasing crafting supplies and shopping habits.
- Key crafting trends, market drivers, launch activity, and innovations in crafting.
US Arts and Crafts Market Overview
The arts and crafts market is flourishing with almost three-quarters of Americans participating in the past 12 months. The category is benefiting from an increasing interest in handmade, personalized products and recognition of the therapeutic value. There are challenges, with heightened competition from online retailers, increased material costs, and limited shopper loyalty. As the market grows, preserving the authenticity of handmade goods will be crucial to maintaining consumer trust.
Arts and Crafts Consumer Insights
- Crafters are engaging with various project types. This reflects a diverse market with multiple entry points and the potential for growth across traditional and emerging disciplines such as tech-related craft projects.
- Affordability is a prime motivator for crafters. This is particularly the case for young adults, who are the most active crafters overall, and more constrained by budget. There’s room to position crafting as not just emotionally enriching but as a budget-savvy pursuit.
- Men’s engagement in arts and crafts has increased, rising 10%, indicating a move away from traditional gender stereotypes. Mintel identifies this trend as a shift in the definition of masculinity, as men find a sense of accomplishment and productivity in participation.
What’s Next for Arts and Crafts?
Retailers must evolve with shoppers. Crafters shop around and seek inspiration and engagement across digital and physical platforms. This means that looking ahead, retailing and marketing efforts should provide a seamless omnichannel experience.
Buy your copy of this report today and grow your business strategy. You may also be interested in browsing our consumers and trends research.
Market Definition and Brands Covered
Market definition: “Arts and crafts” describes projects made by consumers for recreational or commercial purposes, either using a kit or from base materials. Consumer creative activities evaluated include painting, drawing or coloring, making decorations (eg wreaths, centerpieces), decorating baked goods, paper crafts (eg scrapbooking, die cutting), kids’ crafts (eg making slime, nebula jar), woodworking, knitting or crocheting, jewelry making, and tech-related craft projects (eg 3D printing, electronics).
Brands covered: The arts and crafts competitive landscape is covered in this report, concerning brands such as Makerplace by Michaels, Handmade.com, Etsy, Lowe’s, Home Depot, Hobby Lobby, Jo-Ann, Amazon Handmade, and more.
Expert Analysis
Leading lifestyle analyst Fiona O’Donnell delivers expert industry insights with this in-depth report.
The arts and crafts market is thriving, driven by demand for projects that allow for self-expression while also being a budget-friendly pastime with wellness perks.
Fiona O’Donnell
Senior Director – Lifestyles, Culture & Identity, Multicultural, Travel & Leisure
Collapse All
-
Executive Summary
- Key issues covered in this Report
- Overview
- What you need to know
- Consumer trends: key takeaways
- Market predictions – arts & crafts
- Â Opportunities
-
Consumer Insights
- Nearly three quarters of consumers engage with crafting
- Crafting maintains pandemic-era popularity
- Participation in crafting shows no signs of slowing
- – Graph 1: participation in any art/craft in past 12 months – any project (NET), by gender, 2023
- – Graph 2: participation in any art/craft in past 12 months – any project (NET), by age and by parental status, 2023
- Inspire kids and parents through creativity and convenience
- – Graph 3: participation in any art/craft in past 12 months – any project (NET), by household income, 2023
- Provide value beyond price
- – Graph 4: frequency of crafting participation, 2023
- – Graph 5: crafting skill level, 2023
- Classes enhance skills and foster community
-
Project Participation
- – Graph 6: types of projects worked on in past 12 months, 2023
- Pandemic boost to arts and crafts has staying power
- – Graph 7: types of projects worked on in the past 12 months, 2019-23
- – Graph 8: participation in painting, making decorations and tech-related crafts, 2023 and 2019
- Decor projects promote wellbeing and individuality
- Quality, utility and harmony for the “total” decor
- Tech expands horizon of creativity
- – Graph 9: select projects worked on in past 12 months, by gender and by age, 2023
- Make crafting more accessible to underserved groups
-
Motivations and Barriers
- – Graph 10: motivations for doing arts and crafts, 2023
- – Graph 11: financial motivations for crafting, by age, 2023
- Boost engagement by touting emotional drivers
- – Graph 12: select attitudes toward emotional benefits of crafting – any agree, by gender and by age, 2023
- – Graph 13: barriers to arts and crafts, 2023
-
Crafter personas and perceptions
- – Graph 14: crafter personas (top three selected)*, 2023
- People are ardent about their craft
- – Graph 15: select crafter personas (top three selected)*, by gender and by parental status, 2023
- – Graph 16: crafter personas (top three selected)*, by age, 2023
- Resin art makes a comeback with young creatives
- – Graph 17: crafter personas (top three selected)*, by race/Hispanic origin, 2023
- Acknowledge and celebrate diversity
- – Graph 18: approach to arts and crafts, 2023
- – Graph 19: select attitudes toward crafting and enjoyment – any agree, by age, 2023
-
Spotlight on hosts and home decorators
- Home is a gateway to self-expression
- Home decorators and hosts find inspiration everywhere
- Help decorators visualize the creative process
- – Graph 20: select activities participated in the past 12 months, by crafter persona (top 3 selected)*, 2023
- Go across mediums to broaden reach
-
Retailers and shopping for supplies
- Crafters shop around
- Competition heats up in the crafting retail landscape
- – Graph 21: retailers shopped, 2023
- Craft-specific retailers are losing ground
- – Graph 22: select retailers shopped, by crafter persona (top three selected)*, 2023
- – Graph 23: approach toward shopping for supplies, by gender and by age, 2023
- – Graph 24: impact of cost when shopping for supplies, by gender and by age, 2023
- – Graph 25: select attitudes toward shopping for supplies – any agree, 2023
- Carafes and crafts
-
Launch activity and innovation
- Competition heats up in third-party seller marketplace
- Sellers and influencers represent strategic market
- Home improvement retailers cater to decorators
-
Marketing and Advertising
- Digital ad spend correlates with holiday season
- – Graph 26: digital ad spend by select craft retailers – across platforms, by month, 2023
- – Graph 27: share of digital ad spend, by craft retailer, 2023
- – Graph 28: share of digital ad spend across platforms, by select craft retailers, 2023
- Jo-Ann announces new partnership
- Michaels refreshes brand identity
- Etsy aims to become go-to destination for gifting
- Etsy: Gift Mode
-
Opportunities
- Areas to branch out to and explore
-
Market Context
- Economic indicators point to a healthy economy and a robust future for crafting
-
Market Drivers
- Crafting promotes mental wellbeing
- AI can complement creative pursuits
- Digital artists find success on Etsy
- Crafting is an economical pastime
- – Graph 29: consumer sentiment index, 2021-24
- Sustainable crafting is a push to reduce waste and get creative
- Look to players outside the category for best practices
-
Market Share
- Mixed results for craft-specific retailers
-
APPENDIX
- Market definition
- Consumer research methodology
- Consumer qualitative research
- Generations
- Abbreviations and terms
Market Intelligence Made Easier With Mintel
The first Mintel Market Intelligence report was published over 50 years ago. Since then, we have provided our unique insights and understanding of consumers, innovation and global markets to thousands of customers worldwide. Here’s why our customers rely on Mintel:
- Gain a comprehensive, 360-degree view of the market: Mintel reports blend consumer research, market forecasts, product innovation tracking, and competitive analysis, allowing businesses to see every angle of their industry and identify new opportunities quickly.
- Make decisions with confidence, grounded in robust data: Each report draws on up-to-date, reliable information from trusted sources and industry experts, ensuring your strategies are based on solid evidence rather than speculation.
- Benefit from expert analysis and practical recommendations: Mintel’s reports are written by experienced analysts who interpret complex data and provide clear, actionable insights you can trust to guide your next moves.
- Stay ahead with actionable intelligence on market trends and consumer behaviour: By combining fresh research with long-term market monitoring, our reports help businesses anticipate changes and adapt strategically. So you’re prepared to make informed decisions and drive growth.
What goes into a Mintel Market Intelligence Report?
Curious about how a Market Intelligence report comes together? We like to think of it as building a detailed puzzle. We start with individual pieces: data from consumers, market statistics, industry trends, and online conversations. Then our expert analysts add world-class human insight and industry knowledge. The pieces are assembled to reveal a clear, comprehensive picture of a market.
The Four Pillars of Our Research
We use a combination of four main research methods when creating our reports, each adding a valuable perspective:
- Consumer Research: Direct surveys with real people, giving us clear, current insights into what people think and do.
- Desk Research: In-depth review of trusted data sources. We use this rich database, plus powerful internal tools that track new products and market sizes, to detect trends and guide forecasts.
- Trade Research: Insights from conversations with industry experts. Their real-world experience helps us understand what’s happening behind the scenes.
- Brand and Social Media Research: Analysis of online opinions and trends. This lets us spot trends, measure brand sentiment, and capture feedback in real time, adding further depth to our research.
Bringing It All Together
Each of these four pillars provides a different piece of the puzzle. Consumer research tells us what customers think, desk research provides the factual framework, trade research offers an insider’s view, and social media analysis reveals public sentiment.
Our expert analysts are skilled in weaving these diverse data streams together. They apply a range of quantitative and qualitative analysis techniques to uncover the deeper story, connecting the dots to deliver clear, actionable insights. This comprehensive, multi-layered process is how we transform raw data into a market intelligence report you can trust to inform your most important business decisions.
£ 3,695 (Excl.Tax)
-
Download today with instant access
Pay via credit card or invoice (net 30 payment terms)
-
Multiple formats provided
We send a PDF, Powerpoint and Excel Databook straight to your inbox. An interactive version of the report is also available on our online platform
-
Interactive databook included
Focus on the data that matters most to you with a customisable databook available on our platform
-
Save up to 20% when you purchase multiple reports
Discount automatically applied in basket
Get in Touch
If you have a question about a Mintel Report, or you would like to learn more about our products, get in touch with a member of our team today.
Contact usTrusted by global industry leaders
We have such a great working relationship with Mintel on lots of different levels. As an insight partner, they have helped us to develop our business planning in specific categories as well as supporting our creative process but they’ve also been super helpful with facilitating our events in their inspirational offices near St Paul’s.
They’re an innovative company, with a client-focused team that always delivers.
Abby Carvosso, Group Managing Director, Bauer Media Group
At Jackman, we believe that powerful strategies are based on human insight. Mintel’s leading-edge reports and insights into consumer attitudes and behaviors are an important input as we develop and execute strategy.
Alana Gavin, VP Research and Insights, Jackman
We use Mintel Reports, mostly for financial services and ecommerce markets, plus a few retail and technology ones.
As a leading payments provider, we value additional insights into consumer behaviour, opinions and trends that are shaping the many different markets we operate in. Mintel is a very good and very quick way for us to obtain those insights.
We use Mintel to get a view on where a particular market is going, which can support us in product development and help us identify opportunities or indeed risks, it is a very useful barometer of a market’s potential.
Andrew Neeson, Market Intelligence Manager, VocaLink
Mintel is really good for getting a handle on a particular category quickly. If we are working on a new business pitch in an area we don’t have much experience in, it’s a brilliant way to get up to speed with what’s going on, what’s changing and what the key trends are in any category.
It’s very rare now that anyone will plough through a 200-page report – that’s why the summaries are really useful. We know they are backed up by a lot of detail, so if you need to go into something in more depth you know the information will be all there for you.
Pauline Robson, Managing Partner, Mediacom
When I’m investigating specific sectors I tend to use Mintel reports for their forecasting, which I’ve always found to be very accurate.
They also offer really broad and deep coverage in their reports. They are very, very detailed. For example, we were able to gain insight across a wide range of business areas from just one report, proving that Mintel is excellent value for money.
So overall, it’s the level of detail and the quality of forecasting that really stand out for me.
Rebecca Green, Market Insight Manager, Wincanton
Get in Touch
If you have a question about a Mintel Report, or you would like to learn more about our products, get in touch with a member of our team today.
Contact us
