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Visit To Anderson Pens!


tmenyc

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This probably doesn't need to be in Market Watch, but since it's about a particular store I put it here.

 

I'm in Wisconsin (yes, I'm a New Yorker from Wisconsin) visiting family, and had long planned the opportunity to visit the brick and mortar Anderson Pens, even though yesterday was a blizzard that made the return trip take 4 hours at 30 mph, rather than less than 2 at more than double that speed.

 

Anderson's is in a lovely little downtown mall, with a College Avenue entrance and an entrance into the mall itself. We were welcomed by both Lisa and Brian, who were slightly less frenetic versions of the Lisa and Brian we see at shows. There were two other employees on duty, both busy with clients the entire time. The store is warm, friendly, nicely sized rectangle, not at all cramped, with stationery in the rear (lots of it, all nice, all FP-friendly, none of that stuff you need a lawn mower to smooth down first), 3/4 of one long side of the rectangle filled with ink. You'd need a telephoto fisheye, which I don't think exists, to get it all in one photograph. The rest of that wall is repair supplies (I don't know of another retail store with a 10+ foot section stocking repair supplies), and a small calligraphy section in the front. The middle of the open space is a large Montblanc counter/display and a large Sailor display, and other new pens displayed. The entire front is pens, displayed openly for easy viewing. It's elegant, friendly, well lit, and fresh. Lisa's and Brian's office/repair area is a smallish room that is still a bit chaotic but with great potential. We spent an hour there and only left then because the snow was getting significantly thicker and we still had to drive back down to the south end of Milwaukee.

 

The moral of the story is that if your travels take you to the Midwest, this is a stop you'll not forget.

 

Tim

Edited by tmenyc

Tim

 timsvintagepens.com and @timsvintagepens

 

 

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Yeah, great store. Just my luck I live in the same state - but on the other side. But when I visit my brother who lives near Greeen Bay, it is a must stop. As I've mentioned before, they stock almost as much ink as Amber.

 

Some good burger joints nearby, too.

Edited by Charles Rice
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Yeah, great store. Just my luck I live in the same state - but on the other side. But when I visit my brother who lives near Greeen Bay, it is a must stop. As I've mentioned before, they stock almost as much ink as Amber.

 

Some good burger joints nearby, too.

 

Nobody stocks as much ink as Amber!

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

“Don't put off till tomorrow what you can do today, because if you do it today and like it, you can do again tomorrow!”

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It is a nice store. I managed to stopped by the day after Thanksgiving and picked up a few holiday gifts.

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I try to stop whenever I'm in the area which, sadly, is only about once a year. The rest of the time, I have to make due with the website.

 

Some good burger joints nearby, too.

 

Charles - please share the names, if you would.

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I try to stop whenever I'm in the area which, sadly, is only about once a year. The rest of the time, I have to make due with the website.

 

 

Charles - please share the names, if you would.

I like The Wooden Nickel which is about a block and a half east of Anderson's on the other side of the street

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Yeah, great store. Just my luck I live in the same state - but on the other side. But when I visit my brother who lives near Greeen Bay, it is a must stop. As I've mentioned before, they stock almost as much ink as Amber.

 

Some good burger joints nearby, too.

For future reference, all directions to physical locations should include nearby "good burger joints" and the like.

 

Because .... community service. ;-)

 

If you're not local there's always roadfood.com

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I get up within about an hour or so of Appleton a few times a year. One of these days, I'm going to take that extra drive north and visit.

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For future reference, all directions to physical locations should include nearby "good burger joints" and the like.

Forgive the lapse; I hadn't realized I had violated the Road Trip Code. Fact is, we didn't eat there because we were saving our appetites for a Kopps stop in Glendale on the way back into Milwaukee. Those who know Kopps know what I'm talking about. Those who don't...imagine your arteries stenosing while you eat and you still have custard coming for dessert.

 

Tim

Tim

 timsvintagepens.com and @timsvintagepens

 

 

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Forgive the lapse; I hadn't realized I had violated the Road Trip Code. Fact is, we didn't eat there because we were saving our appetites for a Kopps stop in Glendale on the way back into Milwaukee. Those who know Kopps know what I'm talking about. Those who don't...imagine your arteries stenosing while you eat and you still have custard coming for dessert.

 

Tim

"The sauces are excellent, the toasted nuts are a revelation, but the foundation is the important part, and at Kopp’s it is ivory-white custard made from high-butterfat ingredients with none of the thickeners and stabilizers that gunk up ordinary ice cream. Custard like this is a Wisconsin passion, and good reason for natives of the Badger State to consider themselves America’s ice cream elite. It is hypnotic to watch it ooze from great silver machines behind the counter. To taste it is to know why Kopp’s has been a beloved Milwaukee institution since Elsie Kopp opened her first stand in 1950. "

 

You had me at "high-butterfat".

 

http://www.roadfood.com/Restaurant/Review/310-310/kopps-custard

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I was a step behind you & merely "pulled up their menu" to find they had CARAMEL custard! It is not a "native" to my area but I am always game for caramel ice cream so I would be willing to bet I could appreciate this.

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I really like the way Andersons do business. And I love the efficiency of their website. Im a new customer.

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Their website is assuredly the MOST "user friendly" of any site I follow. The format & convenience is a true pleasure!

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After meeting Lisa and Brian at the Chicago Pen Show for the past several years, I finally got up to Appleton last summer to visit their store. All of the descriptions above are spot on, and Lisa and Brian are just wonderful to work with.

 

Between their store and the old-fashioned Wisconsin Supper Clubs in the area, Appleton is now on our "getaway weekend" list for sure.

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Their website is assuredly the MOST "user friendly" of any site I follow. The format & convenience is a true pleasure!

The trend is huge photos that hardly load. I much prefer small photos that can be enlarged if need be. Really enjoy the Anderson site.

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I make it to Oshkosh often enough, but the little extra to Appleton doesn't usually work out. Great stuff when I have made it to Anderson's.

 

Kopps on the other hand, I do get there more often than I should... As well as Oscar's, Leon's, Gilles...

 

Brian

One test is worth a thousand expert opinions.

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As well as Oscar's, Leon's, Gilles...

 

Brian

Oscar's ? Gilles? I certainly know Leon's...and the little diner across the street from it.

 

Tim

Tim

 timsvintagepens.com and @timsvintagepens

 

 

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Thread derailed...

 

Custard places. Can't swing a cat around here without hitting one. In SE Wi Culvers are almost as common as Starbucks...

 

Gilles is 76th and Bluemound, blocks from my alma mater (sorry, Alma Mater reminds me of the line from American Grafitti, "I lost my wife too, her name wasn't Idy though, and it wasn't in a flood.").

 

Oscars has a couple locations. Similar to Kopps - burgers, o-rings, flavor of the day...

 

Thread re-railed...

One test is worth a thousand expert opinions.

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