It's our 10th Birthday!

And we're making some important changes...

The publication of Issue 41 of Pom Pom Quarterly marks our 10th anniversary! This feels like a huge milestone for an indie knitting mag that started out as a kitchen table project. In our ten years in business we have stayed the same in many ways and less so in others. We have always loved bright and colourful knits, and celebrated the joys of fibre, making, writing, and delicious food. These quintessentially Pom Pom things are very unlikely to change. However, over the last decade(!) we have experienced some incredibly positive shifts: we’ve gained staff, realigned our work with our values, and published many books under the Pom Pom Press imprint! Now seems a prudent time to pause, take stock, and to assess the needs of Pom Pom and of our readers and stockists in 2022.

Two important changes are coming soon: our flagship magazine is getting bigger and our cover price is changing.

From Issue 41, you can expect:

• A beautifully-produced publication, printed in the UK and carbon balanced with the World Land Trust. 
  
  
• A larger format to better show off our joyous knit & crochet patterns and increase legibility, as well as extra pages to bring you more of the articles & tutorials that are essential to what we do. 
  
  
• A more generous margin, with a 38% discount off the cover price (was 33%) and low minimum order, offering an affordable option for shops large and small.
  
  
• A special standing order rate of 43% off the cover price as a thank you from us for your commitment to our quarterly magazine.
  
  
• A special edition double cover to mark our 10th Anniversary Issue!

Read on to find out more about what this means for Pom Pom, our readers, and our stockists.

A new Pom Pom!

From Issue 41, Pom Pom Quarterly will be printed in a larger format to better show off each issue’s patterns and photography, and to better help you choose which project to cast on first. With larger pages comes an improved layout, which will make our pattern instructions easier to read – something you’ve told us we could work on. We’re also increasing our page count to bring you more of the articles and tutorials that are so essential to what we do. At Pom Pom, not only are we knit and crochet fanatics, we are also devotees of the printed page – makers are tactile people after all! We’re committed to finding sustainably sourced paper, and we’ve always worked closely with our printers to make our magazine as ecologically sustainable as possible. We’re proud to say that new issues of Pom Pom Quarterly will continue to be printed in the UK and are now carbon balanced with the World Land Trust.

Cover price change

With these changes comes another; you will see on our new cover that the price reads £17.50 ($25.50). We are so proud of the work we have done as a team and alongside our incredible collaborators and contributors, and in order to continue to produce the magazine you love, we know that Pom Pom Quarterly simply has to cost a little more. When you pay for your copy of the magazine, you are contributing to the livelihoods of 11 permanent staff, as well as technical editors, graphic designers, copy and sensitivity editors, writers, knitwear designers, illustrators, photographers, models, makeup artists, recipe developers, and more!

We strive to keep our cover price as low as possible while still paying a living wage for all who participate; price accessibility is extremely important to us and we have maintained a low cover price for the amount of content within our pages for many years. In addition to paying a living wage to staff, the price increase also reflects the inflation we’ve seen and absorbed over the years. Nearly all our business costs have gone up since we last increased our cover price in 2018; the cost of rent, shipping, printing, and the price of paper have risen significantly and continue to rise. 

Wholesale price change and shipping

As our cover price has increased, you can also expect a change to our wholesale pricing. Our previous 33% discount on the cover price is now 38%, giving our stockists a more generous margin. Back issues of Pom Pom remain at their previous rates, with many of our classic issues now discounted by as much as 50%. Please refer to the wholesale guide for a full breakdown of prices and RRPs.

Plus, we are now introducing a standing order rate! A standing order ensures that not only do you have the ease of automatic billing and the security of never missing the latest issue, it also means that you’ll receive a generous 43% off the cover price. As before you’ll have the flexibility to edit and manage your order, but now with this additional discount as a thank you from us for your support and commitment to our quarterly magazine.

Your orders will still be dispatched from our UK headquarters, and with the change in size and shape of the magazine we are mindful of keeping shipping costs competitive for you. All shipping prices will be calculated and displayed at checkout as before.

Our anniversary issue

We're also marking this very special occasion with a bumper issue which includes 13 patterns by designers who we knew would perfectly capture the heart and soul of Pom Pom. Look forward to a collection of joyous knitting and crochet, along with a crafter’s guide to London and a recipe for the most beautiful madeleines we’ve ever seen. Our anniversary issue features designs from Isa Catepillán, Sari Nordlund, Marie Régnier, Inyoung Kim, Gina Fama Röckenwagner, Dawn Henderson, Amalia Sieber, Xandy Peters, Sylvia Watts-Cherry, Kiyomi Burgin, Sachiko Burgin, James N Watts, and Ainur Berkimbayeva. You'll find these patterns a versatile mix of pieces for warmer and cooler climes, and we’ve gone all out with a double cover!

Dates for your diary

13th April	Standing order billing date, and pre-order opens
26th April	Press images available
27th April	Retail pre-order / pattern previews live, and stockists' retail pre-order sales may begin*
3rd May	US pre-order deadline
23rd May	Subscriber copies and LYS standing order copies start arriving
31st May	LYS on-sale day and digital live

 

*Pre-order graphic, covers, & pattern images supplied to promote stockists’ own pre-order retail sales for use AFTER 6pm BST 27TH APRIL. 

Thank you!

Finally, we wanted to thank you! Whether you’ve been a stockist from our early issues or your customers are just starting to see our books and magazines on your shelves, we are so proud to be stocked in so many incredible shops worldwide who are integral to our fibre and craft community. 

Thank you for all your support of Pom Pom; we feel honoured to be part of your shop's story. Here’s to another decade!

Love, Pom Pom x