Overcome by the urge to meet this pen in person, it finally occurred to me that -- duh, Vienna has a Montblanc Boutique, so they may have it. Other MB shops do not have this pen yet, so this was not necessarily a certainty, plus I absolutely hate to go to MB Boutiques.

But during my attempt to exercise via speed-walking around the city with my ipod, I suddenly realised that I was quite near the boutique and decided to stop by. The Vienna MB shop is in the most touristy part of town imaginable, in a plaza that on a warm Saturday in May is literally stuffed with people speaking 50 different languages, eating leaky ice-cream, and snapping photographs every 2 seconds. I speed-walked my way through the crowds that stood between me and the enormous, wide-open doors of the Montblanc Boutique, and walked in wearing jogging clothes, with earphones hanging round my neck.

First thing I must say in their favour, is that the salespeople did not blink an eye at my appearance, but greeted me with utmost friendliness. In Boston, even when I am dressed in a suit, the MB staff regard me with suspicion and cool contempt, so this was already so much nicer. What pleased me next, is that even though they are fluent in English, they did not automatically switch to English when they heard my accent, but respected my attempt to communicate in German. And finally, the woman who came to help me, managed to strike a very impressive balance between being helpful and unintrusive. She retrieved the Boheme Arabesque for me from the glass case, answered my questions about it (knowledgeably), and then left me alone with it at the counter for as long as I wanted. This was the most relaxing time I've ever had in a Montblanc boutique.

Aside from the good customer service, the impressive thing about the shop in Vienna is that it is huge, and stocked with many pens that you do not see in smaller boutiques and on the MB website. The staff does not seem to mind showing the pens to you one bit, even if you announce that you just want to look and don't plan to buy anything today. "Of course, that is what we're here for," the woman said. She then explained that part of the function of the MB boutiques is to be a place where people can go to explore the pens, so that they know what to order in the future -- whether from them directly, or from their favourite (authorised) reseller.

That is a nice attitude.

QM2

I sent them my 149 for repair, because it is the nearest mb boutique.
also very nice, urgent and friendly experience.
The MB boutique in wienna is on: Graben 15 (address)

It sounds like a most idyllic plac, QM2. Wish we had places like that. If I ever open a pen-shop, I shall fire any employee who is not madly passionate about fountain pens.

Yes, I often dream of opening a pen and stationary shop that will be like a heaven for FP users.
But of course, the wonderfulness of the Vienna MB Boutique does come at a price: 50%+ compared to US prices! So actually buying anything there is unthinkable for me. Thank heavens for Fred back home (meaning the Bromfield Pen Shop in Boston!).


QM2

Meh, we can dream.

This MB boutique sounds wonderful. Their attitude about showing people pens, even if you aren't buying, is nothing short of amazing. They make commission, so I'm very surprised.

I was there a couple weeks ago! I loved Vienna. I took a picture of the store front to show to my brother, a fountain pen cohort, so I might as well post it on here for the community's edification. The boutique really was in the heart of the city. I loved how the area was limited to only pedestrians. It also wasn't far from my favorite place in Vienna- the Sacher Café. Yummy- Sacher torte

P.S. I just went to look up "torte" to see if there were any accents on it, and the picture on Wikipedia for torte is the Sacher torte! What irony!

You would have to be an eyeless blind with his lids sewn shut to miss that shop! Looks cool!

Yup, that's the one : ) You indeed cannot miss it. Although if you are a resident of Vienna, you tend to stay away from that plaza, because it gets sooo crowded.

Yes, Austria is known for Sacher Torte. And also the unfortunately named "Mozart Balls".

I've have very good experiences in US MB Boutiques in Charleston, SC and at the Plaza Frontenac in St Louis. I've not been to the Wien boutique, but really enjoyed the boutiques in Hamburg and Strasbourg as well.

I've never encountered snooty attitudes from MB Boutique employees in any of these places or the smaller boutiques I've visited.

Eric

I've been to some boutiques in the Boston, New York, and Philadelphia areas. Neither was a pleasant experience. One reason I could think of, is that I look too young to afford the pens, and so they are skeptical about my potential to be a customer. Also, as a rule, most MB salespeople in the boutiques I've been to (except Vienna) are not very knowledgeable about their pens except for some very superficial information that they've obviously been coached to say. If this ever changes and I walk into an American MB shop where I feel comfortable, I will only be too glad.

You made me want to go to Vienna lol But I am surprised they are not the same in Boston because I lived there for 4 years and with all the international students around spree shopping I would have thought they'd be as courteous to whoever walks into their stores just in case?

The Boston boutique is a fairly small and narrow store set in an upscale mall called "Copley Place", near the Marriott Copley hotel and not too far from the Prudential Tower and the Boston Public Library. There are no windows, and the inside is decorated like a jewelry store, with lots of glass-fronted and glass-covered displays, and what seems like two hundred little drawers set into the walls and displays. The store feels a little dark, too, because lots of black is used in the walls, counters, drawer-fronts, etc. The watches, cufflinks, wallets and other non-pen items are very prominently displayed, the pens, less so.

I was earlier, when dropping off my 149 for repairs, and then picking it up later. The staff were pleasant, although a little cool, and seemed to have good pen knowledge. When putting it into a box for shipping to the Pennsylvania repair center, a saleswoman asked me how old my pen is, and when I replied that I had it for 30 years, she smiled and was impressed that I've held onto it that long, and commented that it must be very important to me.