Our Vision For WFS and a Lament About Insensitive Customers

Since Scott and I bought WFS last October, we've made some significant improvements, as I mentioned in my last post. Not all of the improvements involve remodeling - much has changed on the sales floor, too. While we are trying to retain the integrity of the original stationery/office product mix, we're in the process of winnowing out items that are not specific to our niche. We found that there was a slew of merchandise that truly belonged in a hardware store on our shelves, contributing to a messy, disjointed look. We firmly believe that to be successful, we must narrow our focus to fine stationery, gifts and office products, but that's no reason why the store should look so utilitarian. This is partly why we added home and office decor, and we're very excited about this addition!

Previously to taking over WFS I dabbled in decorating, renovating our home and helping friends with theirs. I discovered that I love decorating and design, so adding these elements to our store allows me an outlet for creativity, just as building and design allows Scott an outlet for his (he designed and helped build our new office and storage space). Together I believe we're an awesome team. We love that our new look is fresh, can change with the seasons and adds interest to the store. Customers seem excited by it, too....there's no excuse why your office, whether at home or elsewhere, has to look like an end-cap display at Staples. Now you have the option to personalize it a bit with things that are functional and good looking. We've brought in artwork....some original oil paintings, some prints and giclees, adorable wall and door signs, faux florals and much more. We'd love for you to keep checking in with us, as we're receiving new things for Spring now.

We had a rough moment the day before yesterday....why do some customers have to be so unfeeling and rude? As I wrote in the first post, we understand how our long-standing customers feel about the changes the entire store has made and we certainly sympathize with them about Webster's  lack of communication....but that doesn't give license to be hurtful. An older woman walked through our store, apparently not noticing that I was down on my hands and knees on the sales floor, moving merchandise from one gondola to another. As she got nearer, I could her her making denouncements about the changes, loudly exclaiming to all in her path how much she hated it. One of my associates, Leilana, asked her if she remembered what the "old store" looked like, trying to point out the many improvements we'd made. This "lady" harummped and tartly said that it looked messy and crowded now. At that point, I popped my head up and asked her if she was serious. I really wish I had a picture of the way our store looked before we started the renovation....it was dark, cramped and as I've said, had a mish-mash of products jumbled around. We're trying to streamline our look and raise the bar toward higher-end merchandise.  There's no way we can compete with stores like WalMart, Staples, Target and Costco so why try? At any rate, I'm sure this particular woman and the myriad of other customers who've made it extremely clear to us that they don't like change, haven't really thought about how their comments make us feel when we've worked SO hard to bring the store to where it is now. I realize that there's a long way to go before we're satisfied, but we've made excellent progress so far.....I really wish they'd understand that we're trying to make it nice for them, not just ourselves. We couldn't control what Webster's Corporation did or how they did it, but we can be more communicative with our customers by using this blog. Thank you for allowing me to rant.

A Little History and an Explanation

We're so excited about this blog! I have so many friends who've created some awesome blogs in the past few months (I'll link them just as soon as I figure this all out) and I've felt seriously out of the loop due to my lack of one.....now we can join the cadre.

Let me give you some background on our store. Back in 1923, Scott's grandad founded Webster's, a pharmacy located on North Lake Ave. in beautiful Altadena, CA. Back then, Henry Ford used to test his cars in the street in front of the store, a trolley system brought people to the area and Market Basket's first store was across the street. There's a lot of history packed into this neighborhood....along with some gorgeous examples of architecture, residential and commercial. Grandad (Harold "Frank" Webster) passed away when my father-in-law, William Webster, was 19 and Bill ran it from then on, taking time out only for military service. Though the years, Bill expanded and the little pharmacy became a complex of interconnected stores.....the pharmacy, a liquor store, a stationery and office products store, a Hallmark Gold Crown, a video rental store, a scrapbooking store and a UPS/FedEx authorized shipping outlet all had a home here. The video store couldn't take the competition from on-line outfits such as NetFlix, so that's gone now. The scrapbooking store was moved into the Hallmark store and shipping moved down to the Stationery store.....all in preparation for Bill's retirement. To facilitate this, two of the stores were sold to family members.....Scott and I were lucky enough to be able and willing to buy the Stationery store this past October.

Taking on an existing store, let alone one with this much history attached to it, is a daunting task. Making changes when people are used to it being a certain way is also an uphill battle, as we learn daily. Our challenge was this: create a "new" look without seriously changing the product mix and bring in new items that freshen and uplift the store's image. Early on this past summer, before we took ownership, the two stores at the south end of the complex....the Stationery and Hallmark stores....were separated by new walls between them. No formal explanation was given to the store's customers and for that we're heartily sorry. In retrospect, had the store let people know what was going on, there wouldn't have been such a resistance to the changes. By this blog, I hope to rectify this lack of communication and let everyone know what lies in store (ha ha) for Webster's Fine Stationers. Check back with us soon as we continue our story......