Seven of 26 Pat Catan’s arts and crafts stores in Ohio bought by Michaels Companies Inc. will be rebranded as Michaels stores, the company says.

The rebranded Pat Catan’s/Michaels stores are in Jackson Township, Wooster, Boardman, Sandusky, Amherst, St. Clairsville and Westlake, Michaels said. The store conversions are expected to start around June 22 with the rebranded stores opening in August, a company spokeswoman said. The company will begin hiring for the rebranded stores next month as well. Michaels announced it will close its Pat Catan's locations late last year.

Michaels as recently as mid-March said it expected to rebrand as many as 12 Pat Catan’s stores, with the remainder to close permanently after their inventory is liquidated.

Texas-based Michaels bought Lamrite West Inc., the corporate parent of Pat Catan’s based in Strongsville, in 2016 for $150 million. Pat Catan’s at the time had 34 stores in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan and West Virginia.

Michaels had 1,258 arts and crafts stores in the U.S. and Canada at the end of 2018 and calls itself the nation’s largest specialty provider of arts, crafts, framing and more for home decorators and makers.

The company reported nearly $5.3 billion in revenue in 2018.

It said fourth quarter earnings were hurt by 29 cents per share from restructuring charges related to last year’s closing of the 36 Pat Catan’s stores. (Michaels also closed 94 full-size Aaron Brothers stores in early 2018.)

Michaels said it expects to open 24 new Michaels stores this year, inclusive of up to 12 rebranded Pat Catan’s stores, and relocate 13 Michaels stores.

Jim Mackinnon covers business. He can be reached at 330-996-3544 or jmackinnon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him @JimMackinnonABJ on Twitter or www.facebook.com/JimMackinnonABJ