Will a new owner take up Hobbycraft?

Modella Capital, which acquired Hobbycraft in 2024, is reportedly already mulling a potential sale following an approach from an unidentified buyer. Will the two parties be able to stitch together a deal for the arts and crafts retailer?

Data from YouGov BrandIndex indicates that Hobbycraft is more liked than not. Index scores, which measure overall brand health by combining several metrics, are at 15.6, compared to an average of 12.1 for high street retailers in general. The underlying measures may go some way towards explaining these positive attitudes.

Impression scores, which track general sentiment towards a brand, are at 23.1 for Hobbycraft, compared to an industry 16.1: a seven-point gap that puts them comfortably above other retailers in terms of public goodwill. The brand also performs well when it comes to more specific metrics: Value for money scores, for example, are at 9.0, 2.5 points above the typical score for the high street, and Quality scores are also above par (15.3 vs. 14.3).

Our Consideration metric, which measures whether consumers would choose one brand over others when presented with a list, puts Hobbycraft at 17.1 points; the industry average, by comparison, is 14.8.

These strong perceptions are complemented by an improving commercial performance: Hobbycraft’s revenues grew by 6.3%, according to the brand’s own data, in the six weeks to 28 December.

Nonetheless, there may be some opportunities for improvement. Most notably, Hobbycraft’s Ad Awareness scores (which track whether consumers have seen an ad for a brand in the past fortnight) are lower than the average (2.5 vs. 4.5), and its Buzz scores hover around the average (2.5. vs. 2.6). Recent commercial partnerships such as its collaboration with Olympian Tom Daley – which has been cited by some commentators as a possible reason for its recent surge – could point to a potentially lucrative direction for the brand’s marketing. Still, Hobbycraft appears to be threading the needle in a difficult retail environment. The question now is whether it does so under Modella, or a new owner.

Image: Getty