Lamy Store In San Francisco

[bogiesan]

It is not a big deal. In fact, the store is teensy weensy. Nothing magic happens to you when you walk in the door. Many shiny things to look at and play with. The staff is nice but they talk really fast, have answers to questions you did not ask, and they seem to be happy to see out the door as quickly as possible. I obtained the products I was after but the whole experience was uncomfortable and felt rushed. No matter how I tried to get the young lady to just chill and leave me alone or ask to demo another pen to keep her out of my face, she was determined to ring me up and get me to move along. No one else in the store.

 

If you are a Lamy super fan, visiting the tiny store could be a lofty goal, a sort of pilgrimage. But, honestly, it is not worth going out of your way or making a special trip into downtown San Francisco to go into the Lamy flagship. There are only a few items in the store that you probably cannot easily get from a Lamy dealer like, say, Goulet; one of them is a Safari rollerball stamped with I heart San Francisco. Yeah, I bought one!

 

https://imgur.com/fpngallery/wUZrmmT

[Calabria]

I like the store - and always go there when I'm in

SF. It's just around the corner of SFMoMA, so why not? I also like the young people working at the store. Last time I asked for the new inks and although they hadn't arrived yet, a young man let me try his Kaweco brass pen with a custom ground nib with Lamy Peridot - which his father had brought from a trip to France! I was glad to meet the next generation of enthusiasts.

 

On the other hand, I'd never pay MSRP on a Lamy, except on one of their cheaper pens. I bought a Nexx opal green for kicks and love it. I

also tried a Palladium dialog3 which I ended up buying on Massdrop a few months later. Either way, Lamy wins!

[ErrantSmudge]

Yeah, I don't feel guilty "showrooming" at the Lamy SF store, then buying from an online seller later for a lower price. Either way Lamy wins. But it is useful for things like pen refills and ink which aren't always easy to find online, and where the discount is negligible.

 

The people who work the store are knowledgeable. When the Crystal inks came out I dropped by to pick up some and got into a seriously geeky ink discussion with the young woman staffing the counter.

[Glenn-SC]

On the other hand, I'd never pay MSRP on a Lamy, except on one of their cheaper pens. I bought a Nexx opal green for kicks and love it. I

also tried a Palladium dialog3 which I ended up buying on Massdrop a few months later. Either way, Lamy wins!

But the store lost.

The store, and the young people, have to be profitable too, or they are gone.

[pepsiplease69]

I have not had the chance to visit this store since it opened. My treks to the city have become few and far between, what with the traffic and parking and all.

 

I did call the store once to inquire about the Lamy 2000 multi-pen but they didnt carry those. The guy who received my call seemed knowledgeable and I didnt feel that the conversation was rushed.

 

If they did carry the pen I would have gladly made an effort to visit the store and buy from there instead of online.

[bogiesan]

We rode the train up from Cupertino, walked about 20 minutes.

[ErrantSmudge]

But the store lost.

The store, and the young people, have to be profitable too, or they are gone.

 

That's a really good point - but my money is going to a place like Goulet Pens. The people who work for Goulet also depend upon profitability!

 

Also, although I have no hard information, I wouldn't be surprised if Lamy considered these concept stores as part of their marketing plan and operate them under the assumption they may turn a loss. Part of the goal of these stores are to build the Lamy brand, and target their intended demographic.

Edited June 7, 2019 by ErrantSmudge

[Glenn-SC]

Visiting Brick-and-Mortar stores to try products out and then buying them on-line cheaper is a practice that has been discussed previously, and redoing it here would be upsetting.

[inkstainedruth]

I went to the Lamy SoHo store in NYC last Christmas, after my annual pilgrimage to Fountain Pen Hospital. I was able to test all the Lamy Crystal inks, but they didn't have them in stock yet other than the promo display. I did learn one thing -- the guy in the store told me that they had had a Vibrant Pink al-Star in the window, and it got sort of sun bleached on one side! (Actually ended up a nicer color.... )

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[ErrantSmudge]

Visiting Brick-and-Mortar stores to try products out and then buying them on-line cheaper is a practice that has been discussed previously, and redoing it here would be upsetting.

 

Fair enough.

[1nkulus]

Also, although I have no hard information, I wouldn't be surprised if Lamy considered these concept stores as part of their marketing plan and operate them under the assumption they may turn a loss. Part of the goal of these stores are to build the Lamy brand, and target their intended demographic.

+1

[1nkulus]

Visiting Brick-and-Mortar stores to try products out and then buying them on-line cheaper is a practice that has been discussed previously, and redoing it here would be upsetting.

 

The practice is an unfortunate harsh reality across the board not just pens/stationery but IMO it does not apply in this case.

OTOH, if this were an independent B&M store, it would be unacceptable to 'scan and scram'.

 

The operational loss of the store is probably part of the Lamy marketing budget and the store is designed to entice new buyers to the brand. Lamy wins, either way.

[bogiesan]

I cannot agree that this tiny store is a profitably dynamic and formidable way for Lamy to reach new customers. It really is just an obscure little shop. Sure, it is located on a busy street, but it’s in the boring financial district of a huge and raucous city.

 

One must really want to go there; Lamy is a Destination that must be predetermined and GPS is required.

 

It is absolutely NOT a place that invites the casual or spontaneous visit. A typical San Franciscan, wandering down Market Street, does not stop in front of the Lamy shop and say, “Hey, wonder what’s that about? Guess I’ll go in and see what “Lamy” is and spend some money!”

[Glenn-SC]

 

The practice is an unfortunate harsh reality across the board not just pens/stationery but IMO it does not apply in this case.

 

The operational loss of the store is probably part of the Lamy marketing budget and the store is designed to entice new buyers to the brand. Lamy wins, either way.

You say "probably part of the Lamy marketing budget".

Do you know for a fact it is or isn't?

Have you asked the Manager if this store is "Loss Leader" to increase brand knowledge and loyalty and is not a "for profit" operation?

[inkstainedruth]

I cannot agree that this tiny store is a profitably dynamic and formidable way for Lamy to reach new customers. It really is just an obscure little shop. Sure, it is located on a busy street, but it’s in the boring financial district of a huge and raucous city.

The Lamy Soho store isn't in QUITE as bad a location as you describe the San Fransisco store being. But it is really small, and kinda a PITA to get there unless you lived in that neighborhood -- or were someone like me making a special trip (I was initially coming from Midtown). The trip involved walking several blocks in sort of icky weather to get to the subway, and then stopping en route as part of my annual pilgrimage to Fountain Pen Hospital. I then had to walk several blocks west to a DIFFERENT subway stop. And then several blocks up and over to get to the store. Then when I left I had to walk several more blocks to get to a different subway stop to get me back up to Midtown. I wouldn't have minded if it had been decent weather -- but it was raining and sort of raw out. And then of course getting to try the Crystal inks was nice, but the photos on their website of the display kind of implied that they had the inks in stock....

I do understand that storefronts in Manhattan are going to be premium priced. But they really didn't have a lot on display even then. I think that back when Birmingham Pens had the brick and mortar store here in Pittsburgh, it wasn't much bigger -- but they had the two display cases, the "wall of inks" (by brand and with little color swatches) plus another shelf of notebooks. The Lamy Soho store? It came across more like a snooty art gallery having an exhibit (I half expected there to be someone walking around with an hors d'oeuvres tray). And I was pretty sure I was at least as knowledgable about the product as the staff, although they meant well.

That being said, I'd likely go back because I do like supporting local businesses rather than doing all my shopping online (although after my experience last week in trying to buy prescription cat food -- and having a LONG discussion with a certain shoe manufacturer about how doing everything online lost them a longtime customer, after discovering that their outlet store was gone -- may mean that I'm becoming a dinosaur....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[1nkulus]

You say "probably part of the Lamy marketing budget".

Do you know for a fact it is or isn't?

Have you asked the Manager if this store is "Loss Leader" to increase brand knowledge and loyalty and is not a "for profit" operation?

 

I am just making an assumption considering their store numbers and location.

Just two stores in the US, none in the UK.

 

I am not based in the US and I am sure the manager wouldn't tell even if the store was a 'loss leader'.

 

In countries where online shopping isn't prevalent, B&M would fare a lot better.

 

IMO, the stores turning a profit would be a bonus. Lamy has way more partner channels than company owned stores.

[ErrantSmudge]

I cannot agree that this tiny store is a profitably dynamic and formidable way for Lamy to reach new customers. It really is just an obscure little shop. Sure, it is located on a busy street, but it’s in the boring financial district of a huge and raucous city.

 

One must really want to go there; Lamy is a Destination that must be predetermined and GPS is required.

 

It is absolutely NOT a place that invites the casual or spontaneous visit. A typical San Franciscan, wandering down Market Street, does not stop in front of the Lamy shop and say, “Hey, wonder what’s that about? Guess I’ll go in and see what “Lamy” is and spend some money!”

 

I've been into the shop a handful of times since it's opened and passed by several times more. Most often, there are people inside talking to the salespeople and trying out pens. The store is hardly a ghost town, and it is hardly in an obscure part of town.

 

Also, literally two doors down is a Moleskine boutique that similarly has customers. I'd bet there's an overlap in demographic between the two stores.

 

 

You say "probably part of the Lamy marketing budget".

Do you know for a fact it is or isn't?

 

He used the word "probably" which I take as a clear declaration that he is speculating.

Edited June 18, 2019 by ErrantSmudge

[Glenn-SC]

 

He used the word "probably" which I take as a clear declaration that he is speculating.

 

And here we go.

Trying pens at this store and then buying them cheaper on-line when you have a reasonable expectation that the store workers are dependent upon actual store sales for their continued employment would be what was refereed to as "scan and scram".

No?

[1nkulus]

And here we go.

Trying pens at this store and then buying them cheaper on-line when you have a reasonable expectation that the store workers are dependent upon actual store sales for their continued employment would be what was refereed to as "scan and scram".

No?

 

Yes, it would but with a slight difference.

 

Unlike an independent store owner, the success of Lamy does not depend on the viability of the store.

 

IMO, you can try Lamy products and then access them at a lower price point online is a positive.

The fact that you have bought into the brand in a saturated market, is a success along with the increased probability of repeat business for the brand.

Lamy is still the winner.

 

OTOH, it could well be that the two stores in the US do turn profitable but I would still look at them as a window into the world of Lamy.

Just two stores in the US, cannot be considered as a serious entry into B&M retail.

AFAIK, there are no company owned stores in the UK and AUS.

 

The Lamy bottom line is still dependent on sales through partner channels.

 

As for the employment of store workers, that is just the nature of retail.

IMO, Lamy did not open the stores to reduce unemployment in NY and SF, but to increase access/insight of the brand and that objective is achieved whether the eventual sale is online or in store.

If an increase in overall sales outweighs the cost of the stores, then the stores have proved to be an immensely successful marketing tool.

[ErrantSmudge]

We don't have to speculate on the reasons why Lamy opened stores in North America, we can hear them explain it to us directly.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABn9iW_mLpY

 

Paraphrasing from the video: They consider themselves a lifestyle brand that sells trend-setting items, and the stores are to give the customers a chance to experience the brand and philosophy. They feel they have to host their own stores in order to properly promote their brand.

 

So, the primary purpose of the stores is promotion and brand awareness.