Knitting Boutique's Saturday Morning Breakfast Club Podcast: A Review

I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the Knitting Boutique in MD, the store that would be my local yarn shop if I didn't live in Kenya, has recently started a podcast called the Saturday Morning Breakfast Club. The hosts are the shop's owners, Joyce and Dianna, and their delightful comraderie is one of the things I like best about this podcast.As I said in my review of their store, I'm think it's pretty evident that everything this shop does is planned out. So many hobby shops fail because, while their owners aren't lacking in passion, they sometimes aren't as strong in a business sense. The Knitting Boutique, I'm told, really relies on market research and customer feedback to plot out each next move. The podcast is an extension of that. It manages to highlight all their initiatives (from its own line of yarn to classes to clubs) without feeling too much like a big commercial. There is a tiny bit of that feeling, but the goal of the podcast is to reach out to knitters who can't make it into the store, so I appreciate it. I feel like this podcast is so smart from a business sense. More than describing it as entertaining, I think I'd call it informative. After binge-listening to the three episodes that are currently available via Downcast or ITunes (more are available on the shop's website - not sure why the numbers don't match, but I'm looking forward to more on Downcast), I feel like I've BEEN somewhere - mostly the shop. Since I have no LYS in Nairobi, it fills that void a little.That feeling of business planning is evident in the podcast itself. While some podcasts are charming for being off-the-cuff and relying on banter, you know what to expect with this one. They tell you what segments are coming, not only in the current episode, but also in future episodes. You get the impression there's a LOT they want to say and do and have a plan to make it happen, unlike some podcasts that just end up being rambling. Segments include interviews with shop employees and famous instructors, answers to write-in questions, and descriptions of yarn exclusive to the shop.The only suggestion I have is this: they have made a big deal about the podcast existing so they can reach out to their national and international customers, of whom I'm one. (My current project is even a pair of socks out of their Anacostia Fingering.) However, the set blurb at the beginning and end of each show provides their phone number as dialed from the United States. To reach out to customers who are truly international, not just American expats living abroad like me, it should be clearer on how to call from everywhere by giving the country code. It's a small thing, but I've thought it every time I hear it. *In any case, I'm looking forward to more episodes. I know Webs in Massachusetts does a live radio show that is released as a podcast. Are here any other LYS podcasts you listen to?* August 8, 2015 update: As of episode 4, the podcast gives instructions on how to contact them and includes the country code. Yay!