Michaels

Michaels is one of my favorite stores! This particular one happens to be closer to where I live. I come here frequently to get various paint supplies, drawing supplies, holiday decorations, clearance items and the occasional book. I always, always, always bring a coupon with me so I can get 40−50% off ONE item (only). That also means I have to come into the store more often so I can get a discount on any one item I buy. Unfortunately, the coupon doesn’t give you a discount on all items (read the small print) and that includes books. But still, almost anything I buy with the coupon is reasonably priced compared to other retailers (I bought a wig for my cat– 80% off!). As for customer service, its so-​so. Right now, a lot of Christmas merchandise is out and the store smells like cinnamon and sugar cookies! Makes me feel warm and fuzzy!

I have a serious love-​hate relationship with this big box store… and this location in particular tends to lean more one way.
Let me first explain the hate…
1. The long lines — this one doesn’t have a single line that leads to all tills (Think the 170^th Street location) but for some reason it never fails that there is a single line up that loops through the floral section and winds somewhere into the deep recesses of the store.
2. The lack of available and knowledgable staff — They’re not at the tills (even despite the growing lines), so where on earth are they? The elusive red vest should be hunted for elsewhere if you hope to get help!
3. The full and simultaneously empty shelves — This location is downright cramped and would remind you of Walmart on a good day. There are regularly ladders and carts full of stock in the aisles along with pallets /​displays that leave aisles so packed you can hardly fit through, let alone enjoy shopping. Simultaneously, on more than one occasion, the item I’ve gone in to look for has an empty spot on the shelf.
4.The noise — I’m not sure if it’s the layout or the poor mothers with toddlers in tow — or if it’s simply the music but I find I’m a much happier camper with earbuds to tune out the sensory overload that often occurs after stepping inside.
5. The need for a coupon, that may or may not be permitted for use on the item in your cart — Michael’s is gimmicky… there are regularly 40−50% off coupons and «buy one get one free» sales. Read the fine print to discover that coupons don’t apply to items such as books for example, or end up with two of something you only needed one of.
So, after all that what’s left to love?
1. Long hours — Unlike many speciality stores (think local yarn store) this one is open until 9 pm on a regular basis, allowing for optimal shopping time.
2. Selection — As a chain store across the US and Canada, Michael’s has the ability to bring in a wide variety of nearly everything. They have several aisles full of STICKERS for goodness sakes!
3. Sales — As mentioned in my reasons above, there are regularly sales and as long as you’re not in desperate need for that one item, you can usually get it for a decent price (next week).
With all of that said, yes, the list of hate absolutely outweighs the list of love, but the closer location usually means I end up here instead of 170^th street. And yes, my desire to craft usually means I’m here more than I’d desire to be. However, as shown above, there are some things to love. Two stars, and now back to my scrapbooking!

This location has decent parking and selection. The staff is fairly helpful. Michaels has a variety of product and many sales since a lot of their product is seasonal. They also often have coupons that you can print out from online or get from their flyer.
Not a bad location and fun to walk around.

This is the only Michaels I’ve ever been to so I don’t know how it compares to the others, but I always find it clean and organized and there never seems to be a sales associate too far away.
There is constantly a 40% off coupon out there so don’t go in empty handed (you can get it on the app, or today, the cashier whipped it out as I approached).

And in here today to buy some yarn due to it being on sale. The selection is quite large but is scattered around the store. Horribly organized!
While I didn’t require any assistance on the floor during my visit I found it difficult to find someone in visits past.
Whenever I shop here I always make sure I use a 40−50% off coupon. Especially for my bigger ticket items.
Today I had a very hard time locating a coupon online today. The website was telling me the Edmonton location didn’t exist. When I asked the cashier about it she said «yeah that’s been happening today, kinda weird». Rather than looking into it, I had to ask her to find out whether or not my intention to use a coupon would be honoured. After asking her manager I was in fact given my 40% off.
Over all a decent experience!

As an avid knitter and crocheter, I find Michaels is the best «go to» craft store for well priced yarn. I’ve been purchasing yarn here for as long as it’s been in Edmonton. Unfortunately, the customer service at the south common location has gone pretty downhill within the last few years. They hardly ever keep their yarn stocked and it’s absolutely impossible to find anyone to help you. When you do ask the front for help, you get snobby little high school girls telling you that they can’t help you or that the store no longer carries that product. (yes they do, I bought the same thing 2 days ago) The only saving grace at this location is the cutest woman who works in the floral department (who helps me anyway cause she’s nice and does her job) and half a handful of employees that actually want to help. I’m gonna start to take my business online. The 40% off coupons aren’t worth it.

I have shopped this Michaels as well as the Claireview and Sherwood Park locations and I find the pricing to be pretty consistent from store to store. In terms of customer service however if your an Edmonton local needing alot of assistance with your crafting needs I highly recommend jumping in your vehicle and heading out to Sherwood Park. The customer service at this location is just atrocious.
I came into this store looking for a basket to do a floral centerpiece and as soon as I got past the tills I did not encounter a single employee working anywhere on that sales floor. When I did finally find what I was looking for their smallest basket they had that would have suited my needs was thirteen dollars. I thought that was pretty ridiculous considering I know alot of mom and pop flower stores that sell all different sizes of baskets for 3 – 5 dollars. Even with their email coupons I just find this place leaves a bad taste in my mouth. In my opinion the coupons don’t take enough money off the purchase when you factor in Michaels ridiculous mark ups.
If your looking for something hard to find you can more then likely find it here due to the huge selection but if you can get it somewhere else definitely go there and I promise you will probably pay less and leave alot less frustrated.

I had purchased a set of Micron archival pens thinking these must be high quality because of the price and being made in Japan. However I was disappointed to find that I did not «experience smooth, skip-​free writing and crisp ink colors that leave consistent lettering and lines every time» as claimed by the manufacturer.
Took the pens back a few days later for a full refund (as their return policy states that «all returns and exchanges must be new, unused and in original packaging, with exceptions for DEFECTIVE MERCHANDISE AND PRODUCTS») but to my surprise I received the worst customer service ever.
The cashier was not friendly nor helpful, and neither was the manager on duty (Mary). Mary took a few pens out and wrote a few lines on a piece of paper and told me there was nothing wrong with these pens. She was unprofessional and talked to me in a degrading tone of voice. It was obvious customer satisfaction was not her top priority. She possessed no skills in conflict resolution like a store manager should. She made no effort to even offer an exchange or recommend another product. Mary handed me back the pens and basically told me there’s nothing they could do.
I went back to the same store the next day, talked to a different manager and was able to return the product hassle-​free. I filed an official complaint to the head office and hopefully this so-​called manager Mary will get additional training or get demoted to doing something other than dealing with customers.

As an illustrator, there are several different stores with better selection and price. In fact, having just been to two locations recently, it seems they have actually scaled back on their illustration materials. I have seen items at Michaels that were over three times the regular price of other stores. Seriously, they had a projector for $ 130, the exact same model was at DeSerres for under $ 50 regular price. Even with one of their 40% off coupons, I always leave shaking my head at the total. They need competition for every facet of their business.

Michaels has just about everything a crafter needs! But it’s easy to get caught in the one stop shopping and pay too much for items when comparable items can be found at the dollar store, especially for scrapbooking.
The best part though for someone who watches prices and ensures they don’t go overboard, is to use their coupons. You can always find a 40% (sometimes 50%) off one regular priced item in your stack of flyers in the mailbox or emailed to you if you sign up for the Michaels flyer. So as long as you don’t go nuts and filling a shopping cart with regular priced items that are overpriced, this is a good place to shop at. And if you can’t find the item are you looking for, it’s probably because they are sold out.

As a crafter and a DIYer, Michaels is very useful to me. As mentioned by other reviewers, the selection is pretty darn good. Scrapbooking, yarn, drawing and painting, silk flowers, stamps, beading, cake decorating… pretty much everything.
I agree with the other reviewers in part; the regular prices of some of these items are on the high side. But what the other reviewers failed to mention here is that the sales Michaels has are actually really good. Jumbo skeins of yarn for $ 4? Yes! Decorative craft supply boxes for $ 1 each? Hells yes! If you buy stuff off-​season or watch for sales, the stuff here is super cheap. And some things (particularly the kids stuff, acrylic paints, fabric medium, stamps, sketchbooks, and the knitting /​crochet supplies, to name a few) are the same prices as they are everywhere else on a regular day. Michaels also issues 40% off one item coupons in their flyers, which is great if you’re buying one big ticket item.
You really need to pick through and find the items that are worth it and the ones that aren’t. Overall, Michaels is a great shop if you know what you’re looking for or if you pay attention to the flyers.

I had a 20% off everything coupon and decided to see what I could buy. I am into hobby woodworking and thought there must be something.
The store is big and has lots of items but they are counting on one stop shopping as everything is horrendously overpriced. If you take a little time to shop around you will find much better deals just a few blocks away.
It is nice to have so many things in one spot, for me though it is not worth doubling the price.

If you’re in to arts & crafts you will really enjoy Michaels.
The store has pretty much every item you could dream of, for every type of occasion. Things like ribbons, boxes, flowers and glues to name a few. The staff is really helpful and can easily guide you through this huge store.
The store is definitely expensive but you will only have to make one stop when shopping.

I am a huge fan of this store with one exception: the prices.
I love all the great stuff inside this mega-​craft store. You can find anything to do crafts here: artificial flowers, jewelry, glues, boxes, baskets, ribbon etc. I often go to this store when I am looking for something that I can’t find at the dollar store, but I usually give up when I see the prices.
Just yesterday I was in search of a small pot for a new plant that I bought, and I went here thinking I could find a simple pot here for a good price. I was sure wrong — They had numerous pots and the least expensive one was $ 14.99. And that was not a very nice pot.
Too bad.
Other than the prices, I do enjoy this store. I think it is a great place to find many things.

Michael’s is great if you need craft supplies.
They are the most expensive craft place that I’ve ever been to but they have everything.
I buy most of my scrapbooking stuff here (and get whatever I can at Dollarama). But they really do have everything. They have stuff for weddings, seasonal decorations, jewelry making supplies, arts and crafts beyond belief — everything!
The staff id knowledgeable about where items are in the store — and if they aren’t sure, they will call someone to find out.
Like I said, they are expensive but they can be. They are THE arts and crafts store.