Nation’s largest craft store now open in former Boise Shopko location
Hobby Lobby opened its new Boise store on Monday, April 19. It’s the Oklahoma City company’s sixth store in Idaho, including Meridian and Nampa.
The store is located at the site of the former Shopko store at West Fairview and North Milwaukee Street. Shopko had operated since the early 1980s before filing for bankruptcy and closing in March 2019. Construction crews spent several months renovating 55,000 square feet of floor space and 8,235 square feet of mezzanine.
Store hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Hobby Lobby is closed on Sunday. Each store offers more than 70,000 crafting and home decor products including floral, fabric, needle art, custom framing, baskets, home accents, wearable art, arts and crafts, jewelry making, scrapbooking and paper crafting supplies, the company said.
Hobby Lobby had earlier announced it would open the Boise store on April 12, but the opening was delayed a week.
“The success of our stores in Idaho is a good indicator that Boise shoppers will be pleased with the quality, selection and value we offer in the craft and home decor market,” Kelly Black, Hobby Lobby’s director of advertising, said in a press release.
The story below was published March 26, 2021, under the headline, “Nation’s largest craft retailer announces opening date for first Boise store.”
Hobby Lobby has announced it will open its first craft store in Boise at 9 a.m. on Monday, April 12.
The store is located at the site of the former Shopko store at West Fairview and North Milwaukee Street. Construction crews have spent months renovating 55,000 square feet of floor space and 8,235 square feet of mezzanine.
The company has held hiring fairs for the past two weeks as it looks to hire 35 to 50 people to stock the shelves for the opening and for permanent employment. People interested in working for Hobby Lobby can speak to a manager through 5 p.m. on Friday, March 26.
“Positions start out as temporary with the opportunity for full and part-time positions,” Hobby Lobby said in a Facebook post about its hiring fairs.
The store is comparable in size to Hobby Lobby stores opened this month in Nevada, California, Alabama, Louisiana, New Jersey. Those stores are from 42,000 square feet to 56,000 square feet.
The company has not said whether it will offer grand opening specials. More details are expected closer to the opening date. A mailer sent out recently to Boise residents said the store will have more than 70,000 products.
Shopko had operated at 8105 W. Fairview Ave. since the early 1980s before filing for bankruptcy and closing the store in March 2019.
Hobby Lobby operates more than 900 stores across the country, including five in Idaho: one each in Meridian, Nampa, Twin Falls, Chubbock and Ammon
The company spent an estimated $715,000 on the Boise store improvements.
This story was originally published March 26, 2021 at 12:14 PM.
