Michaels Grand Opening Sunday in Alexandria

ALEXANDRIA, VA -- Arts and crafts store Michaels will hold its grand opening Sunday at its new store at Bradlee Shopping Center, 3654 King St. in Alexandria.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is set for Sunday morning at 9:45 a.m. and doors will open at 10 a.m. As part of the grand opening celebration, Michaels will be giving away more than $1,500 in gift cards and prizes throughout the day. In addition, customers can win items for the whole family from a plinko prize board, which includes jewelry, art supplies, stickers and more. On Saturdays, kids can explore their creativity with $2 Kids Club crafting events that continue all year long.

“We hope everyone will come out to help us celebrate during our grand opening festivities on Sunday, Sept. 18,” said District Manager Jeff Underwood. “Our new store features thousands of products that will inspire every crafter at any level from beginner to expert, plus classes for our customers to learn new skills and explore their creativity.”

The store features an open design with wider aisles, warm colors and brighter lighting, the company points out in a news release about the grand opening. Key departments are expanded and re-organized for easy shopping:

• Home decor and floral offers wall art, tabletop decor, dried and silk floral for DIY or custom arrangements, as well as vases, candles, decorative storage boxes and seasonal items.
• The scrapbooking and paper crafts department features more than 3,000 styles of stickers and embellishments plus loose paper, card stock, “bling” and a vast assortment of tools for cutting, cropping, edging and stamping.
• The jewelry department has thousands of different styles of pre-strung and packaged beads, along with specialty findings, pendants, charms, tools and organizers.
• The kids and tweens department inspires creativity through a vast selection of craft supplies and activity kits, plus everything needed for creating A+ school projects.
• The art supplies area includes an expanded canvas selection and fine art papers with more shapes and larger sizes, more than 230 brushes and a broad selection of acrylic, oil and watercolor paints, drawing pencils, pastels and easels.
• Custom framing features an open-style work area that encourages a hands-on design experience, with expert framers to help select mats and moldings for all styles and budgets.
• Get inspired while mastering new skills with Michaels’ variety of classes. Cake classes cover basic design as well as advanced techniques for fondant and gum paste. Crafters can put their spin on the latest jewelry trends with jewelry making classes working with a variety of styles and techniques. Paper crafting classes show how to make cards, banners and even wreaths like a pro. New yarn classes run the gamut from simple arm-knit scarves to intricate crocheted animals.

Michaels will also be signing up customers for its new free loyalty program, which is designed to deliver benefits to its members. As part of the loyalty programs perks, members will receive custom offers tailored to their interests, receipt-free returns, access to exclusive in-store and partner experiences as well as advanced notice and preview shopping hours for special events, all without a point of purchase level requirement.

The new store will be approximately 18,661 square feet and will employ more than 60 people.

PHOTO of new Michaels store at Bradlee Shopping Center in Alexandria