Is It Too Late To Save Webster's?

If you've been reading our blog, you know there's a huge grassroots movement all across the country urging people to shop locally. From Maine to California, people are becoming more educated about how shopping at independently owned businesses positively affects your community's economy. There's The 3/50 Project and The 10% Solution, there's BuyLocal groups in almost every city and town in the U.S., but is it enough to save Webster's?

Webster's has been suffering a decline of business for years now and the family has been fighting hard to make ends meet here. The big box stores and chains have affected our business severely, and the decision by the family to separate the stores didn't help matters much. I can't answer for the family's reluctance to communicate with our customers and friends about the separation, but I can share our feelings about it (which I've done in prior posts, if you read back).

Bill Webster has been running the pharmacy since his father died when he was 19 years old. His desire to retire spurred the separation, because he just couldn't figure out a cost-effective way to keep all the merchandise separate if we didn't erect walls between the stores. Note that I said "cost-effective". Possibly, we could have found some point-of-sale system out there that would've allowed us to keep the stores open to each other. That system, along with all the accoutrements necessary for it to function correctly, would've been terribly expensive. Contrary to popular belief, none of us has a lot of extra cash laying around. Remember, I wasn't always a Webster, and I've been overhearing all sorts of conjecture and innuendo about how much money the family has for years. After sinking just about everything into the store to keep it running, how could they have any? If an expensive system for the control of merchandise was out of the question, the only thing left to do was to build the walls or sell. Since then, our store has lost over 50% of its former business....I can only imagine the effect on the other stores.

So that's the gist of what happened. Those walls went up in June of 2007 and it's now June 2009. It amazes me that people still come in, every single day, and ask about the changes, and that's just in my store. Seriously, people, at least 5 time a day people ask when we made the changes. Is it really true that so many of our customers are only our customers once every two years or so? This is why I've tried to call your attention to the community benefits of shopping locally and to educate you on the dangers of shopping at chains and big box stores.

I would love it if Webster's Fine Stationers could succeed as a separately owned store. This store is our baby, our passion, and we've been nurturing it carefully these past two years. I think we're headed in the right direction and even though Altadena doesn't seem to like the changes, we've got some staunch supporters of our store. We've got so many plans ahead for fund-raising for local non-profits such as The Quality of Life Center and Five Acres, for having fun events here at the store and with the Altadena Arts Coalition, I'd like to see them come to fruition. We'd also like to keep all our local employees working, and not adding to the unemployment statistics. It's scary to think about, but if the separate stores can't pay their rent, then Webster's Pharmacy will be gone. My father-in-law is again talking of selling it all. He's got a point, you know. There comes a time when you have to ask yourself if this is actually a business or just an expensive hobby. Truly, my friends, we can't keep the stores open with no revenue - no one has that much money.

How many times have I heard people say, "What would we do without Webster's?" Well, Altadena.....what would you do? You'd be driving by a large condo or apartment complex where we are now, or perhaps a storage place or an ugly office building. You'd be driving down to Pasadena every time you needed to pick something up. Kid's got a project due at school? Whoops, now you've got to drive down to Michael's or a stationery shop on Colorado Blvd. for project or poster board. Need an ink cartridge refill for your printer? Schlep on down to Staples, on Arroyo for those, because you'd sure be lucky if RiteAid has them. I'm sure you don't need more examples, you know it would be a shame if Webster's as a whole had to go out of business.
Time something was said, and I guess it falls to me. So I ask you, Altadena.....show us some love and help us save Webster's!

WFS American Heritage Celebration, Now Through July 3rd

What better time to have a celebration of the basic tenets of American society than Independence Day? In the days leading up to our nation's 233rd birthday, we ask that you stop and think about what makes the U.S. special, unique and a nation that stands alone in the world as an ideal. Now stop and think about what makes your community special and unique. Is it the McDonald's down the street? The Rite-Aid or the Starbucks? Maybe the HomeGoods store or Marshalls or The Home Depot? I'm thinking it's not. Every community, more or less, has these big-box and chain stores. More likely, it's that great little liquor store down the street, or the cleaners that also does wonderful alterations that gives your community its character. It's that fabulous little gift shop or stationery boutique where you can find the choicest offerings that you can't find everywhere else. These brick and mortar stores are the foundation of your community and in reality, are the foundation of business in the United States today. Used to be, all stores were mom & pop operations....we are the businesses that America was built on and I'm proud to be an independent retailer! In that light, Webster's Fine Stationers is celebrating its great American heritage with a heartfelt thank you to our supporters. We urge everyone to rethink their shopping habits and patronize their local businesses. Read about The 3/50 Project.....go to their website, http://www.the350project.net/ and register as a supporter. If you're a retailer, register also, and use their promotional material and make a change in this retail environment. Say no! to the big boxes and chains and yes! to independent businesses!

For our celebration of American Heritage, we've printed up notecards you can address to our troops for the 4th of July. Make a serviceman or woman's day brighter by telling them just how much you appreciate their courageous contribution to keeping America free. Webster's Fine Stationers will take all your cards and forward them on to our military servicepeople. Just ask a crewmember for one of the cards at the counter.

Remember, my friends....shop local, keep your money in the community where it belongs and have a fabulous 4th of July!

Get Your Summer On, Part 3 - New Product Alert!

Ahhh, summertime....it's almost here and what a perfect time to keep in touch with your family and friends. Backyard parties, graduation celebrations, birthdays, wedding and baby showers, pool parties, sleepovers - there are endless options to get together this season. Invitations for these events can be found all over but I know you're looking for something special....something different and fresh and WFS has found them! PJ Invites, a new company who makes their imprintable (or fill-in) invitations right here in the US, has unique and colorful designs with fashion-forward colors....we've just gotten our first shipment in and we couldn't be happier! Another plus is they come with coordinating thank you notes.

PJ Invites also makes personalized stamps for all your correspondence. I know, personalized stamps have been around for a long time and they're cool, but they're pricey and you have to keep buying replacement inkpads for them. Enter PJ Cardona, who has designed a self-inking stamp that'll last for 30,000 impressions, which is probably more than you'll stamp in a lifetime! She also told me that if for any reason her stamps dry up, they'll replace the stamp with a new one....that's a guarantee I like. PJ's stamp designs are the coolest around, too, and they offer licensed sorority logos. Tri-Delts, you know you've always wanted a personalized stamp with your sorority affliliation on it, right? Even if you're not a sorority gal, these stamps are so special and can personalize your correspondence notes, letter papers, books, homemade gifts....anything you can think of. So handy, compact and cute, cute, cute! We even have notecards designed especially for the stamps, which you can personalize with your new, custom stamp....these are wonderful gifts for anyone for any occasion and they're ready in less than a week!

Getting Your Summer On, Con't

Early summer wouldn't be complete without Father's Day and this year it happens on the exact date of the solstice. Being prepared with a gift for your dad can be challenging (at least, I always thought it was) but particularly now, since we're all looking for a good bargain.


Webster's Fine Stationers has taken the guesswork out of providing your father with a lovely gift.....our Father's Day Gifts-to-Go! We've taken some of the hottest men's products we have, put them in a handsome file box and gussied them up just for you. These are a great deal, since we've lowered the prices for them. As an example, we have a box of essential gifts for dad that would cost, if bought separately, over $50.00....our price is $39.99.


Other great dad's day gifts include:


Monteverde pens are a fabulous gift for that special dad! Pictured are the Atlantica, the Desert Sand, Mona Kea and Jewelria Leather and Cork pens.











This is the Invincia, a handsome pen any man would love to own and it includes a 4g flashdrive in the cap!



Stationery suitable for gentlemen is not that easy to find, either. Luckily, Webster's Fine Stationers carries Crane & Company and they have excellent selections:


Or, a Waterman gift set might be appropriate:






All in all, you can't go wrong with a Father's Day gift from WFS! Remember, too, that we elegantly giftwrap purchases over $20.00.

Get Your Summer On At WFS!

I don't know if you know this yet, but Webster's Fine Stationers has a great fragrance line for you and your home. It's called Pacifica and it's here just in time for summer! We have seven luscious, sparkling fragrances that discriminating shoppers will love. Pictured here is Waikiki Pikake, a sublime Island jasmine scent that's perfect for the warmer months ahead. We also carry purse sized shea-butter based solid perfumes, for touching up your fragrance on the go! Perfumes retail for $25.99, the solid perfumes for $10.99. Candles retail for $19.99.

We also have body butter, a rich mixture of natural shea butter that feels (and smells!) like heaven. Body butter retails for $21.99.

All these products are available in the fragrance shown, and also Mediterranean Fig, Malibu Lemon Blossom, Sandlewood, Brazilian Mango Grapefruit, Lotus Garden and Hawaiian Ruby Guava. The candles are 100% soy wax that burns clean while scenting your home. These make great gifts for any female, from the graduate to the birthday girl! Testers are available of all scents for you to try out.

We brought in Pacifica not only for their excellent personal care products but because they, as a manufacturer, have committed themselves to helping improve the environment. Stop in and read the information card about them at the store and I think you'll agree that their vision is enviable.

SPECIAL for our readers! Mention that you read about the new Pacifica line here on our blog and receive 10% off your Pacifica purchase!

A Slice of Humble Pie for Larry Wilson?

Interesting article from Pasadena Star News reporter Larry Wilson regarding his recent sling-shots at Altadena:
http://tinyurl.com/p9egcx

Thank you, Larry!

Project Altadena!

You might've read about this on Tim Rutt's Altadenablog.com ( http://www.altadenablog.com/ ) and in the Pasadena Star News ( http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/business/ci_12461255 ) but I wanted to convey just how excited I am about it!

For those of you who haven't heard about it yet, the Altadena Arts Coalition is going to be handing out disposable cameras for $20.00 a piece to the first 100 persons who show up at Photography by Walt from 8:00 a.m. on July 1st. Photograph places you love, people dear to you, whatever it is in Altadena that floats your boat....the only requirement is that you live in Altadena. These photos will end up being a part of a huge exhibit on Saturday, September 5th, the date of our next North Lake Business District Open House. Of course, you will receive your photos back after the exhibit.

Can you imagine? 100 disposable cameras with 27 exposures each.....that means roughly 2,700 photos that will comprise this exhibit. 2700 photos of Beautiful Altadena as you see it - that's truly huge! I think this is such an amazing project!

The timing couldn't be better to give our lovely town a large dose of feel-good. I've been reading a few articles concerning Altadena online at PasadenaStarNews.com ( http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/ ), and the comments that follow them. I'm appalled about the perception of Altadena from outsiders. I'm appalled at the comments from insiders, too. I don't understand why this town is getting such bad press, but the AAC will be working hard to change this situation. Altadena needs some consciousness-raising, some help with the collective self-esteem. Altadena needs to feel good about itself....and it should! There's lots to love about our community and the beauty of it is only the crown at the top.

The Altadena Arts Coalition, and Webster's Fine Stationers, is all for helping Altadena be the best it can be. You can help us by spreading the word and joining the fun!

Congratulations to the AAC For A Fabulous Event!

The evening of Friday, May 15th, the Altadena Arts Coalition's North Lake Avenue Open House brought people out in droves to have fun while re-discovering the delights of the area....and what a party it was! I'm so proud of the founding members of the AAC and their efforts in this endeavor - it just goes to show you what a little creativity and a lot of hard work can do. What's surprising is how well it went off with only a few short weeks of planning, due to the combined talents of Ben McGinty, Lance Anderson, Molly Tierney, Chef Jeff Kline, Ms. Dragon and all the other members who pitched in! Extra kudos to to Ms. Dragon, who spent many hours compiling names and addresses of the businesses involved and printing the maps that were handed out for the evening....all your hard work is genuinely appreciated.

Thanks are also in order for those whose contributions made the evening magical. All our Altadena/Pasadena Bloggers: Karen Bugge (AltadenaHiker), Susan Carrier (OpenMouthInsertFork, TheOrangeCat and CancerBanter), Petrea Burchard (PasadenaDailyPhoto), Tim Rutt (Altadenablog) and Bill Westphal (AltadenaWeatherCam)....all of you rock and thanks so much for lending us your expertise for the evening! Readers, you can find links to all these wonderful blogs below in my blogroll. Thanks to Steve Salinas of Altadena Hardware for fashioning and providing the brackets to hold the banners Scott made and also for rockin' the crowd with his band, The Dispositions....you guys were great! Thanks to Karen and Robert Myers of Karen's Hallmark for donating the balloons that marked each participating business - from New York to Altadena Drive, that was a lot of balloons, and we appreciate it. Special thanks also to Pierre Dupuy, who drove his Jitney up, down and around North Lake Avenue for hours, ferrying people to the different activities. Thanks to all the businesses who participated....this was the first of many events to come and they'll just get better with your help. And lastly, thanks to our Altadena residents....you are the ones who attended and made this an evening to remember....we appreciate it and hope you'll spread the good word about your local businesses!

Be sure to check out all our local blogs....there are pictures posted now and more to come, so don't miss out.

Altadena Arts Coalition Open House May 15th

There'll be lots of community activity this week and we think that's a good thing. You've all read about how important it is to shop locally, especially during these hard times. You know how spending money locally benefits your community and that more of your consumer dollar stays in your community than if you'd spent it at a chain or a big box store. So now that you know all this, what better time is there to have a get reacquainted with your local businesses party? The newly formed Altadena Arts Coalition, comprised of galleries, merchants and small business owners, are throwing a party....an open house spanning businesses from New York Drive to Altadena Drive along North Lake Avenue....with entertainment, goodies and good times for all this Friday evening, from 4:00 pm until 9:00 pm or later! Read on about what AltadenaBlog.com has to say about it, and thanks to Tim Rutt for allowing us to use this:

"Altadena Arts Coalition/North Lake Open House 5/15/09
The Altadena Arts Coalition invites you to the North Lake Business District Open House, Fri., May 15, 4-9 PM. Many businessess will be open, and there's a full roster of events for the whole family. Come on over and meet your business neighbors:

Activities to date include:

Altadena Hardware, 849 E. Mariposa: Steve Salinas and "The Dispositions,: 6-9 PM.

Altadena Junction, 2524 & 2526 El Molino Ave: Alex Schaefer will be painting 20 minute oil portraits from life, 7-10 PM: "Sit and get painted."

Coffee Gallery, 2029 N. Lake:

Gallery at the End of the World, 2475 N. Lake: Underground Arts Society presents the Group Show, "Spring Fever" May 15-17. Opening reception, Fri., 4-9 PM.Featuring the work of:Victor Cass Johnny Fox Barbara Kaletta Nora Koerber Dave Lovejoy Caroline Maxwell Ben McGinty Ngene Mwuara Hector Pedraza Alison Proulx Domingo Ramos Robert Rodriguez

Photography by Walt, 2455 N. Lake. Opening reception, "Emerging Photography" Emerging Photographers from around the Los Angeles Area on display for the weekend.Opening Reception Friday May 15, 2009 @ 4:00-lateSome work will be available for purchase.Photographers: Rafael Agustin Delgado Phillip Kim Daniel Paul Michelle G Aron Kearney Candace Boysen Martin Nguyen Vivian Lin Jessica Torres Hanson

Ronnie's Automotive, 2012 N. Lake: Classic car show.

Steve's Pets, 2395 N. Lake: Altadena Chamber of Commerce mixer, 5:30-7 PM.

Webster's Fine Stationers, 2450 N. Lake, Ste. B:"Blogger's Cafe," including snacks, coffee, and tea, and a chance to meet some of our local bloggers (including Altadena Above It All, Open Mouth Insert Fork, Altadenahiker, Pasadena Daily Photo, and others.) Ask questions, get advice, meet the faces behind the keyboard."

WOW....what a line up, and there's more coming! I'm very excited about this (as you can tell) because I think Altadena needs to be recognized for the unique and beautiful place it is. Ever since Old Fashioned Days fizzled out, we as Altadeneans have had no reason to all gather to support each other and have fun. Oh, there've been functions and there have been parties and benefits galore, but there has been no true public event that Altadena could call their own....until now. The Altadena Arts Coalition, the brainchild of Ben McGinty, Lance Anderson, Molly Tierny, Chef Jeff Kline, Ms. Dragon and yours truly, has great hopes that this open house will be the prelude to many more to come. We hope to engage the Altadena resident - our customers, patrons and supporters - and get them reacquainted with their local shops, businesses & art venues. Why go elsewhere when our community is so rich with everything you could possibly need?

Come join us Friday evening and let us show you how Altadena rocks! Webster's Fine Stationers will be hosting the Blogger's Cafe on Friday night. Come meet your community's most prolific bloggers....ask questions, get advice about what blogging is all about, how to blog, and why blogging is so important to the area. We'll be sampling our Wind & Willow gourmet appetizer mixes and there'll be refreshments for all!

We hope to see you Friday evening....it'll be a wonderful time with many surprises in store, and you'll never know who you'll run into up here....could be a celebrity siting or two? Hmmmm.....maybe!

Easter Bunny Stops at WFS.....Gives Prizes & Fun!

What a great time we had on Saturday, April 12th, as the Easter Bunny made a stop at WFS, spreading Spring cheer in his wake. It was a scream to see him dancing a conga line of kids through the store and up and down the street! The culmination of festivities was, of course, the great prize giveaway for the children who'd entered our Easter Coloring Raffle....the expressions on their faces was priceless. We want to thank all our customers and children of our community for making this such a wonderful event, one we hope to repeat for many years to come!

Webster's Legendary Parking Lot Sale Returns!

Yes indeed, my friends.....it's baaaack! The sale that's the stuff of legend....the place where you'll find the best deals anywhere....all the shops at Webster's Center are cleaning out their stockrooms and you don't want to miss this monster bargain heaven. The sale begins promptly at 8:00 a.m. this Saturday, April 18th, when Webster's Pharmacy, Webster's Liquor and Karen's Hallmark open for business. Webster's Fine Stationers will be observing normal hours for Saturday so we'll be participating from 10:00 on. We hope you'll join us for the fun - come have a complimentary cup of Pasadena Coffee Company's gourmet coffee and sample some of our appetizer mixes from Wind & Willow!

We also want to extend thanks to our treasured customers who helped make our annual Easter celebration and children's coloring contest/raffle such a success. It was so wonderful to see such happy faces on the kids as they met and played with the Easter Bunny, and watching them win prizes was priceless! I'd like to take this opportunity to also thank our friend and representative of SP Richards, Marshall Lefton, for donating the handsome DayRunners that were raffled off to our lucky adult customers. Pictures of the celebration will be posted soon, so check back with us to see them.

We're very excited to announce that we'll have our very own website soon....we're in the initial stages of building it and I love how it's progressing! This blog will undergo a makeover along with the creation of the new website so I anticipate it looking a bit different in a few weeks....stay tuned for developments.



Celebrating 83 Years!

PARKING LOT
SALE
Saturday
APRIL 18, 2009
8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M.

FEATURING PRODUCTS FROM:
Webster’s Pharmacy
Webster’s Liquor
Webster’s Hallmark (Pasadena Store)
Webster’s Fine Stationers
Karen’s Hallmark Shop
KatScrapFever

THE EVENT WE ALL HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR!

Join Us For A Hoppin' Good Time!

Reserve Saturday, April 11th for a visit to Webster's Fine Stationers. The Easter Bunny himself will make a stop here between 12:00 noon and 3:00 p.m. to greet you and your family and hand out prizes to the winners of our Easter Coloring Raffle!

If your child hasn't entered our coloring contest yet, don't panic....there's still time to get their entries in and their artwork displayed in the store. Just drop by and pick up one of several designs for them to color, bring it back and we'll enter them into the raffle. Adults will have a chance to win merchandise, too - door prizes will be given out periodically all day.

We'll be featuring Isabella Cookie Company's famous Sugar Rush cookies, decorated for the Spring season. As always, gourmet coffee and tea is offered daily as a complimentary bonus and you can sample some of Wind & Willow's fabulous appetizer mixes. Munch happily away while your children clamor over the Easter Bunny - make sure you bring a camera with you...you won't want to miss this classic photo op!

We'll be playing wonderful, classic Motown and other nostalgic tunes you can boogie to while you shop. And if all that wasn't enough, mention reading this blog and we'll give you 10% off your purchase. Leave a comment and we'll give you a free gift!

All of us at WFS are looking forward to seeing you this Saturday.....happy Spring to you all!