Where Did All The Pen/stationary Stores Go?

[Cursive4me]

It's been many years since I was in the market for a fine writing instrument. While researching online, I realized that there seems to be very few left. I guess the internet and email has changed the landscape in this market as well.

 

In my area, there seems to be really only a couple of options, other than the office supply stores. A Mont Blanc store at the airport, a seemingly high end store in downtown Chicago, and a small stationary store in one of the burbs. There may be others, but I will have to do some more checking online.

 

The office supplies carried the Cross Bailey, and the Schaefer VFM, but that is it. I ordered a Pilot Metropolitan online, but did also pick up the Cross Bailey in a gift package, pen and ink for $20 as well.

 

Where do you shop?

[ac12]

Out competed and driven out of business by the big box office supply stores; Staples, Office Depot, etc.

 

The local stationary stores that I knew of and used to go to, in the 1980s, are long gone. There is only one stationary store that I know of, "Village Stationers," 10 miles away. And because they are a small store, they have a limited selection of pen, inks, etc. In cases like this, you are forced to go online, for the stuff that small the local shop does not carry. It is the only local place that I can get bottle fountain pen ink, other than Noodler's. I am surprised that they are able to keep going, as I have NEVER seen more than 6 customers in the store.

 

Noodler's ink I can find at the local art store, FLAX. And what Noodler's inks that he does not have, he will order for me.

But he is an art store, not a pen/stationary store.

Edited March 16, 2016 by ac12

[Freedom]

Theres only one brick and mortar store in Edmonton, AB

I purchase all my fountain pens online. Almost all my inks & stationary is purchased locally tho.

[kapanak]

I guess I am lucky enough to live in Greater Vancouver area, which has at least five dedicated/semi-dedicated pen/stationary stores. I believe that's not a common thing even in big cities in North America.

[dasXFnib]

Slim pickin's here in Central NH!!!

Even the Staple in Concord has absolutely NO fountain pens...and a VERY limited supply of cartridges..

At last check (about a week ago.....) they had ONE BOTTLE of Scripto Black and ONE BOTTLE of Parker Blue!!!

I had to go online to get Cross ballpoint refills!!!!!! Staples DID have a 2-pack of MEDIUM (I needed FINE....) for $6!!!

Snagged 6 reills for $9 online.....!!

 

Always try to get the dibs...on fountain pens with EF nibs!!

[Tyrosh22]

Given my budget as a student, I always look for the cheapest place to buy when it comes to new fountain pens (although I don't buy new pens on a regular basis). There is a fine stationary store downtown, which I attend to when buying inks. The range of inks is even quite respectable and I always try to shop there when looking for new inks to support this local shop!

[shawndp]

In Toronto we are lucky I suppose to have a few dedicated pens shops - Wonderpens, Laywines, etc... That said, I remember being able to go to Grand & Toy in the mall (many malls) and buying Cross & Waterman pens when I was in university in the late 90's - those are a distant memory now... The internet may be the best and worst thing that has happened to pens as a hobby in that it connects us to sources that we never had access to in the past. Now we can know in real time a pen's cost / option / availibility just about anywhere on the planet. For me, this means no longer buying a lot of pens locally - there is too much of a price difference to overcome. The local store quoted over CAD 1000 for a M1000 that was $600 out of Spain, my Visconti HS was EUR 240 (USD 270) vs the US$ 650+ I saw it for in Paradise Pens in Michigan. On a more mundane level - Lamy Safari's are just over half the price out of Europe (with fast shipping and excellent customer service) - so when I purchased half a dozen as gifts, I email a couple of very nice people in the Netherlands. I guess that is where the pen stores have gone - to the internet... You of course do not get to handle the merchandise before you buy, but the level of service, knowledge and passion (compared to some of the people who worked the retail pen stores before) and the price savings may actually leave you in a better position sometimes. All the best!

[TheRealMikeDr]

Nothing here in the Cleve Ohio area other than a high end Jewelry store that has some MB's. I bought a Sheaffer 100 at the local OfficeMax. All they had was the Medium nib though.

 

Don't write off (Ha!) Century Pens in Chicago - they have affordable pens there and the staff is great!

 

I buy from eBay and Amazon and Goulet Pens on the Internets.

[Cursive4me]

Nothing here in the Cleve Ohio area other than a high end Jewelry store that has some MB's. I bought a Sheaffer 100 at the local OfficeMax. All they had was the Medium nib though.

 

Don't write off (Ha!) Century Pens in Chicago - they have affordable pens there and the staff is great!

 

I buy from eBay and Amazon and Goulet Pens on the Internets.

 

I haven't been to the store in Chicago yet, I will get there eventually though. I'll save that for after I have gained some knowledge and used a pen for a bit. Turns out there is a shop in Milwaukee, supposed to be the oldest shop in the U.S. I'm equidistant between Chicago and Milwaukee, so i will have to eventually check that place out too.

[Buzz_130]

In Washington, DC and the surrounding area, we have a few excellent stores that cover a wide range of modern fountain pens, inks, and paper. Dedicated stores like Bertram's Inkwell and Fahrney's are examples of excellent commitment to fine writing tools. Throw in Paradise Pens and Levenger in one of the big malls, and there's a decent chance you can see and try a good fountain pen or hunt down some nice ink or paper.

 

We're also very close to the DC Super Pen Show, Baltimore Pen Show, and even the Philly show is a reasonable drive. My interests are more in line with vintage fountain pens, so I like to go to the shows.

 

But for the occasional purchase, I find the dedicated online stores to be a joy to work with and order from.

 

I haven't been involved in pen clubs, but that's another option for many that want to touch and try fountain pens.

 

Buzz

[Perdendosi]

I think there are quite a few stationery* stores these days, but most of what I see (Papyrus or Paper Source chains, etc.) focus on greeting cards or weddings stationery. Weddings seem to be the big money maker these days. I suppose that's about the only time people are expected to use high quality paper and actually get something int he mail.

 

I'm lucky enough to have a pen/stationery/book/high end personal goods store nearby called Tabula Rasa. It's fun to browse, but all of their pens are >$100 (MB, Cross, etc.) I've never asked them to ink up a fountain pen (though I have tested out some rollerballs). Maybe as my knowledge increases I'll have the guts some day. So since I've gotten into this habit, all my shopping is Amazon, Goulet, Vanness, xfountainpens.

 

 

*(There are millions of stationary stores, meaning that they're immobile. But finding a stationary stationery store, now that's the trick. :-). Sorry to be persnickety!)

[jar]

The stores went the way of the users.

[ksm]

On Polish fountain pen users forums we had a discussion about B&M stationery stores recently.

 

I commute to Warsaw, in my home town of 30 thousand people, 35km north of Warsaw there are two small stationery stores, one of them has no fountain pens but small selection of Pelikan 4001 inks, the other has few low end Parkers and limited choice of Pelikan, Waterman and Parker inks.

 

But in Warsaw I know about at least 5 stationery stores with nice offer of fountain pens, unfortunately prices for high end, 'special order' pens are outrageous, for example one of the shops gave me a quote of around 620 while well known Dutch internet shop offered same pen for 445 including shipping.

 

There is also problem of professionalism. Only two of those 5 B&M stores have people genuinely interested in pens on staff.

On the other hand every one of handful of specialised on-line pen stores is owned by a person genuinely interested in the things they sell.

[PAKMAN]

I shop at Vanness Pens in Little Rock Arkansas, they are about 75 miles away so I get over there about once a month. But they are also on line so I can purchase from them anytime I want and get the same great service! Huge selection of inks and pens!

[cellmatrix]

staples and office max and the other big box office supply stores have contributed to local mom and pop stationery stores going out of business. Also, online stores like jet pens, goulet, Amazon, eBay have contibuted to and/or taken advantage of the local stationery store closures.

[rwilsonedn]

It seems as if the only surviving stationery stores are near clusters of people who value traditional crafts and have spare time. The only ones I know of in the San Francisco area are in very affluent neighborhoods near universities. As ac12 observed above, art supply stores have taken over some of the role of the traditional stationer. What used to be a basic communication skill has become a craft.

ron

[SteveE]

C4M - That pen shop in Milwaukee is Daly's Pen Shop. They are on the west side of the city. If you are still seeing an address in downtown Milwaukee, you should be aware that they closed the downtown location a few years ago and now only have the west side location (IIRC, it is on Burleigh Street). I've been there. Nice people, modest collection, but nonetheless they are a shop focused on pens.

 

In the Chicago area, you already know about Century Pens, downtown Chicago. I haven't been there, but I hear good things about them.

 

There is also, I believe, a stationer in Elmhurst that is said to sell some fountain pens.

 

Also, in Rolling Meadows (northwest of Chicago, near the Woodfield Mall), there is the one remaining location of Executive Essentials. This is basically a pen counter within the outlet store of Irv's Luggage, on Busse Road just north of Higgins Road. Modest pen selection, fairly good ink selection, mostly retail prices unless you find a marked-down item.

 

It has gotten to the point that when I want a "pen fix" and need to get to an actual store, I go either to Avalon Pens, in Zionsville, IN (suburb of Indianapolis) or to Anderson Pens, in Appleton, WI. For me, either is about 3 hours each way, but we are sometimes in the area for weekends, etc.

 

P.S. I almost forgot that there is a Paradise Pens location in the Oak Brook Mall, west of Chicago. They are a typical Paradise location. Staff is staff - they may or may not know pens. Their selection is modest, and all pens are shown at full retail price.

 

The usual disclaimers apply - I am in no way affiliated with any of the shops I've mentioned. I'm a happy customer of all of them, for varying lengths of time. If you want more of my opinions or experiences with them, just PM me.

Edited March 16, 2016 by SteveE

[cleosmama]

There's absolutely nothing here in Lafayette, LA except for Office Depot. We don't even have a Staples store (though I believe now that Staples and Office Depot have merged, so it might not make any difference anyway).

 

When I got to Houston, I do go to Dromgoole's. There is Papier Plume in New Orleans, but they are not a stationery store, per se.

Edited March 16, 2016 by cleosmama

[jmccarty3]

The stationary stores have all gone to that big stationary store cemetary in the sky. I think they all used to carry Schaeffer pens.

[aderoy]

There are none in Southwestern Ontario. Have to drive (or call) to Cambridge (Phidon Pens) or Toronto for Laywines or Wonder Pens. Means from 3 to 4.5 hours roadtrip each way.