I met a client at Lowe’s today to select carpet for her remodel and while I was there, I tried to restock my paint chips.  But the display for Martha Stewart’s line at Lowe’s was missing.  Did they stop carrying her paint palette?

No.  “Martha Stewart’s going bankrupt and everything’s shutting down,” the paint tech replied.

Wha?

She said the paint line was the first to get hit but that everything else was shutting down too, including Martha Stewart Living.  According to the paint tech, Eddie Bauer is also hitting the skids, which is another paint palette I use frequently.

Now…I’m not expecting to get the lowdown on financial woes at Martha Stewart Omnimedia from a paint tech at Lowe’s.  But with all of the other home decor mags folding left and right these days–including the stalwarts and the ones with hyper-devoted readers–it would be slightly less surprising, no?

Still, I’m hoping the paint tech is talking out of her butt.  Say what you will about Martha…love her, hate her, whatever.  The woman does know how to steer the creative ship and I shudder at the void that would be created if one of the last bastions of the home decor publishing world were to go under like that.

Anyone have any scoop that corroborates this?

Update: Martha Stewart signed a big deal with Home Depot in September, so maybe this is just some hogwash the Lowe’s management is filling their employees’ heads with to explain her departure from Lowe’s.  If that’s the case and there’s no truth to this, that’s some pretty skeevy rumor to start.