Love it when you dig into the nitty gritty of organization and strategy. Good stuff. "That's the way we've always done it" is a huge trigger for me. It just means "We don't want to spend the effort to think about how it could be better/faster/more efficient".
QOTW: I laughed when I heard the question, because most people I know outside of work may never pick up a pen the rest of the day. Being a nurse, everything is pretty much computerized. My co-workers consider me strange because I carry a pen case with me and several notebooks. I bullet journal, I can spend hours just journaling if I need to work out a specific issue I may have going on in life. I write out my blog posts before I type them. I literally wrote the book I'm working on before typing it up. On any given day, I can spend anywhere from 10 minutes to 3, 4, 5 hours or more, writing and don't get me started on how I get teased for journaling with a fountain pen. Great vid!!! TfS!!
Hey Brian and Goulet team, thanks again for another Q& A. As far as paper goes I have listed what I look for in paper: 1. Weight e.g. 120gsm 2. Ruling e.g. blank, french ruled, grid etc. 3. Colour e.g. bright white, cream 4. Binding e.g top wire, perfect, staple 5. Brand, manufacturer e.g. Rhodia dot pad with Clairefontaine paper 6. Cost 7. Ghosting 8. Bleed through 9. Can you use paint, ink etc (for art journaling) 10. Ease of tearing out 11. Smoothness 12. Feed back through pen when writing 13. Recommended use I had a thought with ghosting and bleed through if you use the same pen, nib, ink with a quick sample of how other nibs with the same ink works. This way you have a base to compare different paper. Don't know if that helps but thanks for thinking of all the stationery junkies that this may mean a lot to them. QOTW: I write heaps with a pen I also draw or include in my art practice so I would say a couple of hours a day. There is just something special about actually writing using pen and paper.
Devin Clark thanks! Haha, I’m such a ball of energy and kind of a disruptive force I doubt calming would be the go to descriptor for me from most of my team! But yeah, I’ve heard it from those who watch my videos :) -Brian
What a great video. I really admire your management style. It's very apparent that you care about your employees and business by investing time and effort to better yourself to lead everyone else to personal success. All that and still keeping your family in focus. Very respectable, keep up the good work Brian!!
It’s never unfortunate to put your family first as you decide how much time to invest in your business! I commend you for doing that. You have balance and discipline that brings much more satisfaction in your life and less likely to burn out on something you love! With that said, you can have live videos for people to FaceTime or send message questions in a live video. Just a thought, don’t know if you’ve already done that!
Regarding top-bound notebooks, when I took shorthand in school (back in the dark ages), we used the steno pads with the red center line. We were taught to write on one side of the page going from the front of the notebook to the back, then flip the notebook over and write on the other side of the page going from the back of the notebook to the front. By the way, the red center line was for taking notes in two columns. The reasoning was that one could write more quickly if one's hand only had to travel half the distance across the page, and shorthand is all about speed.
J. S. Matlock that is fascinating. I always wondered what that line was for in high school and apparently I occasionally used it “correctly” - writing on only ½ the page at a time that is
Also, as an idea for a (note)book nook (paper palace? sheet suite?), you could do it very similarly to the nob nook, pick an average pen and ink combo, like a Safari with a medium nib and noodler's black and just take some close up shots of writing to show feathering, some of the back for ghosting/feathering, and a few dry time smudges. Things like smoothness are going to be too tactile to get an idea of on a computer screen, but those other factors are all things that most people want to know for paper. And while I'm not saying it's easy by any means, compared to the swab shop, pen plaza, and the nib nook, the varieties of paper you carry are significantly less numerous than those of pens and inks, so it wouldn't be quite as big of a task as those others.
Tangentially, it's genuinely soothing how you're matching the walls and Thermos and sundries. I was sitting here trying to figure out why I was so calm...
the comparison of notebooks would be a great idea :) they have something along those lines in jetpens for instance. Question about papers: 1) Is it fast or slow drying/absorbent? 2) Does it allow sheen to show up? 3) How does it perform with very good/very bad performing ink
On paper: I work in a print shop, so I'm always stealing nice paper out of the recycling bin. When it comes to categorizing it, every company has their own quirks, but there are some basic parameters that all follow. Smooth vs Linen vs Laid for texture. Smooth doesn't necessarily mean no texture, particularly when comparing writing or bond or copy paper. Color and brightness also play a role. White papers aren't all the same (and yes, the customers will notice 😊). Ink will always look different on different papers. We don't have to deal much with bleed-through, but there can be an issue of "see-through" with thin paper. I was curious about the difference between opaque and offset paper (different price points) and I believe the opaque gets a special coating that helps the paper not be so "see-through". Assuming that y'all don't want to go down the rabbit hole of paper, I'd suggest sticking with only the types of paper you already would sell anyway. I'd rank them on a gradient of color. Then I'd test them just like you test inks. Pick a few "standard" inks that'd be used for all the paper tests and test for how much bleed through, how long it takes ink to dry, how well the ink shimmers and shades, etc. If all the papers show the same inks, they're more comparable.
Regarding the testing of paper. I think that is a good idea to try this, in the same way you have ink samples, and the nib nook. I don't think that would be too difficult to make happen. Simply use a most popular pen and three different nib sizes (F, M, B or 1.1). You could do a lot on one page, or even a half page. Do samples on each of your most popular papers. To make things interesting you might even do samples on some of the papers mentioned in the relevant feeds on FPN, such as notebooks, loose leaf papers, and copier papers sold at drug stores and office supply stores. Whether it's paper testing, ink swabs, or nib testing (nib nook), people still might have a different experience when they use them personally. I don't think it's possible to provide perfect online samples or renditions of inks, nibs and paper to please everybody, but I do believe it is possible to give us some pretty good indications on how ink, nibs, and even paper will perform in general. Just some thoughts.
QOTW. I write about an hour at work and about an hour at home. On the paper samples. Just standardize something and go with it. I would pick 6-10 pens with a variety of nib sizes. Wet and dry. Each with a different ink. From one extreme to the other. Adding a pencil and a sharpie would be useful. And then show the back of the paper as well.
I purchased my first fountain pen from your company. It is a Lamy Safari and it’s made me want more! I’ve been journaling since I was a child. As an adult I journal nearly every day about 15-30 mins. I also write with both my jobs taking notes! I’ve always loved to write, but I have arthritis now so I need a comfortable writing pen. I’m looking at a Twisby Eco, but still considering others. I now have several journals going! I’m sure I’ll be ordering again soon!
You guys should do a podcast! It could be kind of informal, like Write Now, but it could also include snippets from your interviews with other pen poeple!
I wanted to chime in on the second question about videos about paper and notebooks. I would very much enjoy the content but also sympathetic to the subjectivity and the difficulty of empirically describing the quality of the notebook. To that effect, I offer a suggestion, format the notebook education series in the way of comparing one to another. The different combinations will give you a reference point of how one paper compares to another. The variety will ensure there are combinations for years to come. And from a business stand point this may encourage viewers to try different brands of paper for themselves if they find some kind of quality they find interesting.
QOTW: At work around 15 minutes a day taking quick notes here and there with the blue G-2s we keep in stock. For school at least an hour, sometimes 2, with my fountain pens! I have 3 classes a week and each are a 3 hour long lecture. Then there’s homework for one class that I do all handwritten as well.
Hey Brian, with the release of Lamy Vibrant Pink, I was wondering what are your favorite vibrant ink colors? I personally prefer dark magenta and green inks, but J. Herbin Rose Cyclamen has a special place in my heart. Thanks!
Brian, write a business organizational book telling your story, how you learned what you learned that helped you grow, all the while maintaining your vision, values, and goals. Just my suggestion. Your company is a fascinating case study of successfully transforming a passion into a livelihood. So many people (myself included) want to learn how it can be achieved! Btw, to answer your q: I only use fountain pens, use em everyday, approximately an hour to an hour and a half a day of writing scattered throughout the day.
Nubi Bulit Katchr thanks! I’ve definitely thought about it. Right now it’d be a bit of a distraction bc I’m so hands on with GPC , in the future tho I could see getting into that a bit. -Brian
I think this Brian's approach to the hobby > business transition has a lot to do with his engagement with social media and having a plan for this. He's Gen Y, and has leveraged the media of the day to reach and build his clientele. It's a smart, modern approach - but also risky, given the time and effort required to build and maintain an online presence and generate lots of content. If it doesn't work, it takes you away from other things required to grow and run a business. He's clearly done it well, and is knowledgeable and personable. If that didn't come naturally, his experience may have been different.
Being and having a focus for your business is critical ... It's always essential to do a cost benefit analysis but at the same time I believe that stepping out of the "comfort" zone is also very important - I work in a company and more often than not we land up saying "no, this idea doesn't seem to add value to the way we do business and what our focus is on" and sometimes we miss out on opportunities. However I've noticed that if we do something new or do the same thing differently it has really enhanced our customer connection and have conversations that may not have happened in the " usual" way we do business. In terms of business strategy we've moved from core competency to agile because we found that we had become less responsive and getting ahead is sometimes better than catching up with trends and changing customer needs. So in terms of pen retailers there seems to be those who are not strong online so pen shows means a whole lot in terms of revenue. Some have both offline and online presence and they still are present in pen shows ... They seem to derive some advantage from this. Currently, mainly driven by tech, customer buying behaviour is changing very quickly .. Omnichannel search, selection and purchase are the norm right now. So our clients have to change how they define " this is HOW we do business" ... For example P&G faces more competition from subscription services, direct to consumer sales and speciality/ small manufacturers via online presence than their traditional competition in stores. .. The growth of analogue and the new generation of potential customers for pens, ink and paper products are steeped in omnichannel buying behaviour ... It's not easy ...
I'm an account manager in high tech but I use my fountain pens in all meetings, bullet journaling my work and personal note books. Pretty much anytime I have a problem and need to work through to a solution I write it out. Or at the very least, I work on penmanship. so I'd estimate at least 4 hours everyday- almost exclusively in fountain pens.
You could possibly use a very common pen, like a Safari or Metropolitan with each different nib size to test paper. Maybe use the Noodler's Black since that's pretty standard for the nib nook.
Yeah I think that's probably the route to go. I think a Safari/AL-Star with the easily swappable nibs EF - 1.5mm makes sense. Something to think on! - Colin
I 100% agree with this. When he asked about feedback on how to standardize the paper tests, I immediately thought of Safaris and Metropolitans. And of course, Noodler's Black is a wonderful standard. I'm sure it won't be disappearing any time soon. Also, QOTW: I'm a college student and I write with my TWSBI Classic about 2 hours or so a day in class. I actually write with it so much, I'm looking for an upgrade to possibly a TWSBI Diamond 580AL though I'm not sure of the actual ink capacity difference.
I was thinking something similar. I do agree with the 580s too since especially the 1.1 can be a "gusher." Something like the "ink test" pages you guys do, but show the back too. Good for showing properties across paper too (sheen/shimmer on paperA vs paperB).
I, too, like this idea. One additional point: rest each sized nib on a page for 5 seconds, 20 seconds and a minute (or something like that) and then measure the size of the dot left behind. If the pen-nib-ink-paper combination invites feathering, the dot will be quite large -- and quantifiable. If the combination invites bleed through, then the dot may show up on the fourth page behind the subject page. Etc. Thumbs up for @paks1969 question and these responses!
QOTW : 2-4 hours. Part of my job requires notes on the case I am processing (though technically my office is paperless) and I take notes at weekly and monthly meetings. Then at night I maintain my bullet journal and gratitude log which takes 30 minutes at least. Friends check weekly for ink choices and pen aquisitions. Besides a few technical pens, artist's gel pens, and novelty(Sheaffer Star Wars R2-D2) gel pens, I use fountain pens. It feels so fancy to write checks and thank you notes with a fountain pen.
Feathering, bleed through and show through are all important to me. There are so many possibilities -- you can use a finer nib for paper that isn't great, etc. I used the official Bullet Journal but the show through was making me crazy, so I changed to Erin Condren who has great paper. I've gotten into Travellers Notebooks and specifically match the subject to the paper. If i'm going a lot of watercolor, I sometimes buy inserts made of watercolor paper. The thicker version of Tomoe paper works okay for that. Anyway, good luck trying to sort all of this out. Love your videos.
We want paper test like the swab pads. Preferably with more known pens. Wet pens on certain paper, like Visconti, Pelikan, flex pens etc. And it would be cool if you did like extra fine to BB or something to that to see what kind of thickness would this paper work best with, most journals size ones people would probably just use EF or F to M anyway. but you never know :D
Erin J. McFeeters I use fine or extra fine because I use terrible paper. I find that with a fine or extra fine nib I can get away with using a larger variety of inks without worrying about bleed through.
Brian, I really enjoyed this video as I have all of your vids. QOTW: I probably spend a total of 15 to 20 minutes a day using a pen. Mostly my BIC Gelocity 0.7 in blue or black, but, also my fountain pens. One observation on this video; please turn down the volume on the background music score. The music is OK, but, at times, it drowns out your comments. NOW, I have a suggestion for you and Rachel. After listening to your comments about your business structure for company meetings, I truly believe that you and Rachel need to write a "company autobiography on your techniques for growing your business.....from the dining room to your present huge warehouse location. Reveal how you have incorporated the many different management books you've studied into your "Goulet" model of business organization and tailored leadership style. You could make the book available on your website as an eBook, down loadable for a fee. That would eliminate the expense of printing a physical book. There are possibly many folks who visit your website who are trying to start their own businesses and could use your and Rachel's incite. Especially, husband / wife teams. .
William Dungan Jr. thank you! I’m honored. Ebook could certainly be an option. I think eventually I will get there. Right now all my time and energy is focused on running GP but I could see it in the next couple of years. -Brian
How about the Chicago Pen show one year? Folks on both coasts have got to meet up with you and even down south (Atlanta). Us mid-westerners would love to meet ya!
Paper Feedback: I’d like to see, as a baseline, a ‘typical’ black ink like Noodlers executed with Fine, Medium, Broad, and Flex nib (same brand if possible) on each paper with a picture of the front and back of the page. Maybe the “quick brown fox” line written in each nib size. Beyond that, seeing a bright ink like a vivid red and a pale ink like light blue would also be good to see on each paper type. Maybe written in just a Medium nib.
I have a question: I few months back I bought a Faber-Castell converter for my Jinhao x750, after a few tries I pushed it pretty hard and I heard it click into position; so far so good, I had no issues with that combination. I've now tried to fit the same converter into my new Faber-Castell Loom and I just couldn't. I've pushed as firmly as I've felt comfortable doing and it still didn't click; I've tried to use it as it was and the converter ended up rocking back and forth inside the body of pen, making a mess as soon as I unscrewed it to check the ink level. Is this normal or is my pen/converter broken? Should I just push harder? By the way, I love "write now" and your company as well as your own team; keep up the great work!
Love you guys! I'd like to see some paper comparisons at least in terms of which paper would be recommended for a particular purpose. I'd also really love to see a hardbound a5 notebook with lots of pages in Tomoe River paper. I'd love to bullet journal with it.
I write fiction, so it varies a lot. I write with my fountain pens anywhere from 30 minutes to 8 hours a day. All of my rough drafts are handwritten. :)
Scrolled down quick through the questions in the description to the QOTW! I spend a good 2-3 hours a day writing with my pens. I’m a college student and a writer. So, my pens always get used ^_^
For people who want stenographer type notebooks, I found disc bound notebooks to work well. Some people don’t like them, but if you have your own punch, you can put the binding on the side or the top as you please, they lay flat, and the pages are easy to take out and put back in.
QOTW: Between 30m - 1hr a day fountain pen focus use during the week. I'm a Technical Program Manager, so I keep a work-specific BuJo w/ project "dashboards", trackers, and quick notes... it varies, but from 5-20 min a day I'm using it. I keep my personal Passport TN in my purse for planner/collections/personal tracking and notes, and since I purchased the Some Lines a Day 5 year journal, and receiving the Clairefontaine notebook in the "Rachel daily carry" set, which I use to practice penmanship, my "opportunities" to write w/ a fountain pen increased. I tend to limit ball point pen use to signing purchase receipts on thermal paper or filling out "official" forms.
I work in a detail-oriented field. I spend about two to three hours a day actually writing with a pen. At least 30 minutes of that is purely for relaxation and contemplation.
As for meet ups... I'm not in the area, so this is just a random shot in the dark, but I live in an area that has a FABULOUS library system. You could do an event at a library, and it could serve as PR for you as well for random library go-ers who may stumble across your event.
After falling in love with fountain pens because of this channel, I think i've finally came up with a question that I can't settle on. I recently watched your Travel Pens: Backpacking Edition video about certain pens and papers are good for traveling. Since that video 2 years ago, what would you say would be some (updated) pens or paper that would do well traveling now? Anything that stands out?
I think with paper, the colour of the paper is really important whether it's white white or more of an off white or more a cream. Then if it is 'treated' so the ink flows on top. And then lastly just some pen tests on how much bleeds through/ feathers. Because when using fountain pens that's the most important.
QOTW: It really depends. There are days when I don't write anything, and there are days when I write 3-4 hours in one go. I use a fountain pen as much as possible due to ergonomic reasons. It took me a while to find really comfortable pens for myself.
I never really thought much about the Mnemosyne notebooks cause I’d never heard them mentioned or seen any reviews, then for Xmas this year my sister randomly got me a N182 graph book, and within a page it became my favorite fountain pen-friendly notebook. I definitely back the quick mention in this video :)
For QOTW, I spent a good deal of my day with my pens. I homeschool the kids and feel like I am always using them between grading and planning. Probably 2 to 3 hours or more on school days.
QOTW: I write some every day; but, I don't use a stop watch to keep track of the time spent actually writing. I have to think about something before I write it down. If the phone rings before I'm done writing, I will spend time talking on the phone. After my phone conversation, I discover that there are doodles on the paper. I had not been aware that I had been doodling. Doodling is almost second nature. If I am working on a letter to send to a friend or relative, I have to ask myself if I want to share the doodles or not. If not, then I start the letter over. It seems like there are times when I do a lot of writing; but, I don't actually get a lot written. My guess is 15-20 minutes; probably more if I count the doodles.
I probably write for 45 minuets a day, usually with a LAMY either all-star or safari, because they write well... I have maybe 10 fountain pens the vanishing point being my most expensive. I write on either Clairefontaine or Rhoda A5 standard A5 in a TN cover. I really liked this video, it’s good to step back and think about focus, thank you.
QOTW - That's hard to say, but I intentionally use my pens as much as possible. When I write my sermons I write them long hand, as I believe it helps my thought processes, then I make it digital (ya know, keyboard it into my computer). I also am working on writing some books, so of course I must write them out first.
QotW - my writing time can vary depending on my day at work - I would probably say at least a couple of hours a day up to 10 hours. The long days I am glad I write with a fountain pen and also I have a fitbit to remind me to get up and move every hour.
Hi Brian and Goulet Team. As I was stalking, I mean following, my order from Goulet Pens I wondered, does the post office send an empty truck to you for pick up or do you have a large vehicle that someone has to load and take to the post office? Also aside from Christmas sales is there another typically busy sales season for you? Love the Q & As and Write Now, keep them coming.
Someone from the Post Office comes to our building to pick up. We have huge bins filled to orders that just go right on the truck! Any big launch days (usually LAMY Safari/Al-Star) are usually very busy around here. Just had one last week with the Conklin Duraflex. - Colin
Thank you for the quick reply Colin. I saw the huge bins in the Goulet Tour video. Mind boggling. Maybe a video of a big launch shipment going out in the future?
I would like a photo of front and back of the page for each notebook. Front could have a few sample words with a standardized ink and pen for a few different nib sizes, so I could see feathering, then just take a pic of the back so you see ghosting and bleed. Jetpens does something similar and I find it really helpful.
Meetings to talk about meetings.....corporate america. Sounds like you have a great grasp on it. It annoys me when a meeting doesn't have an agenda....this is a necessity.
QOTW: I am just getting into the fountain pen world. In fact, my first fountain pen will be arriving today(2/24/18). I spend roughly 1-1.5 hours a day writing with an actual pen between work and jotting stuff down at home or around town. I always have a pen and something to write on with me. But, as a new user, what is considered the best black, quick drying ink? As this will be my most used ink I need to know what I should order. Thanks for the content and information.
Noodler's Bernanke Black is probably the best option. That is in the line of quick-drying inks from Noodler's. Beyond that, Pilot Iroshizuku Take-sumi is one I've found to dry pretty quickly. - Colin
Not a paper review tool specifically, but it would be helpful if you shared photos of the back of the paper when you post ink reviews. Since you guys are already using the ink in those reviews on a few different papers, that would give some ideas of how that particular ink might behave on different paper. At least with ghosting or bleed through.
How to test and compare paper I do not know. But one thing I think would be a blessing would be: standardised measurements of line width produced by different nibs. We all know that "EF", "M" or "BBB" alone mean close to nothing, given that different manufacturers have a very personal idea of what this all stands for. If your idea of EF is the Preppy 0.2, then a Pelikan EF is like writing with a lipstick (or, vice-versa, with a needle). What I would do is: pick a consistent paper (say, Rhodia, but a more run-of-the-mill paper would probably be even more useful), pick a widely available ink (say, Pelikan Königsblau) and pop it in the pen to test, draw a line (ideally with a writing robot, but I guess the same person would also do) and measure it with some sort of microscope or loupe and micrometric scale (not at all expensive or difficult to find and use). Then with the measurement we would know that Lamy EF is (say) 0.53, TWSBI EF is 0,40 and so on. Of course ink and paper would change everything, but at least we would have a reasonable, objective baseline when making our choices. I appreciate the nib nook as a tool for trying to make sense of nib sizes, but still it will never be as clear and as universal in interpretation as a raw number could be. I'm surprised nobody has ever tried this, I would certainly give it a go, if I sold pens!
For the paper, I'd just like to see how a wet writing nib/ink looks on it. Like the Edison Medium nibs for example. Those leave a lot of ink behind and not all papers can handle it well. I'd like to see a shot of what the paper does in that sort of scenario.
I think it would be great to have not so much educational material as "recommended products" pages. For example, maybe a blog post that recommends paper for students, business professionals, quick notes, traveling, etc. I could see that being a really popular resource, especially for new users who don't really know what they're getting.
For a meetup... what if you sold tickets and donated the proceeds to a charity (something pen related maybe). You could have raffles and gift bags or silent auctions. And ticket sales would be limited so you would have a set number of people attend.
QOTW: depends a bit on the day and what I'm doing. I'm in a tech field so computers are commonplace for communication and work purposes. most of my personal notes on how something needs to be done are done with pen and paper though. so most days I would say about 15 minutes writing with pen and paper. some days a couple hours.
i love these Q&A videos keep up the good work, for how many min i spend writing in one day is about 60 min. i have some days is less and then i have other days i wright more.
4:22 it's really hard to make heavy pens which are good writers imho. I think the only company which really nailed them is the german Online-Pen company which manage to produce heavy well balanced pens which also don't get too rear heavy when posted.
Good comments on paper, Brian. There are too many variables for you to do comprehensive testing and demos, but how about developing a check-list for customers to do the own tests? You can guide on paper weights, caliper, finish, etc., and suggest the types of tests they could perform for bleed, feathering, drag, etc. Sort of a Paper 101.
QoTW: in a normal work day in office not more than 15-20 mins, and on days that I write my journal at home that's about about 45-60 minute session with my journal ... If I'm practising my drills instead of my journal writing, these are at least 30-45 minutes sessions.... I try to use my fountain pens all the time , but I do carry a ballpoint/rollerball and a pencil as well...
Top bound notebooks: Rhodia also makes a spiral top-bound notebook (which Goulet carries). I've used it and strongly prefer it to the staple-bound pads. www.gouletpens.com/rhodia-notebooks/c/248/?sortBy=productName%2Basc&facetValueFilter=Tenant~Binding_Orientation%3Atop%2CTenant~Binding_Type%3Awirebound Rhoida also makes a perfectly square spiral-bound notebook called "Reverse" that you can use top-bound if you like. www.rhodiapads.com/collections_spiral_reverse.php
Brian is there any way you can do a “how to flex” vid with your team to celebrate the Duraflex launch in a write now or as a fountain pen 101 (I’m struggling to learn how to use my new Duraflex #349
QOTW: Probably 2 hours per day. As a homeschool teacher, I am writing research notes, developing lectures and grading stuff. I use almost exclusively fountain pens - a ball point pen feels unnatural at this point.
QOTW I would say that on average I spend an hour a day writing with either a fountain pen or an ink pen that I made. As a college student I have days were I am taking lots of notes and others where I am typing up reports or other documents. I use a fountain pen for all my notes and scratch work when needed and my ink pen in my design notebook for my senior project since they wanted a specific notebook and it is almost the worst paper for a fountain pen lol
I guess, i will spend around 1.5 hours writing with my pens, usually i switch between Lamy 2000 for work related matter, Noodlers Neponset to take notes and quick sketch and a Pelikano to train my son the cursive writing.
QOTW: I know I'm pretty late (new to the channel) but I average about 100 to 300 minutes a day with a pen (usually a dip pen). Not necessarily writing, but I use it to ink images I draw.
I would like to see different papers compared to ink that does not behave well at all. So in this case it might be 54th Massachusetts, I've had that bleed and feather on Rhodia paper. Take for example if we used X-feather, it would be really hard to visually see the difference because it works well on all paper, from my experience. And maybe compare slightly sheening inks like Yama-Budo to see how different papers compare.
Not sure I follow the notepad shape reasoning - all books are shaped that way, it's just the page turning 'mechanism' that differs. Some types of book also go two-column per page to make them more vertical? Confused...
All I care about is feathering, bleed through, I can deal with ghosting/show-through but bleed through and feathering is important. So maybe do polls to find out the most popular pen, ink and nib size combo and then use that as the demonstration standard. Post photos or vids of the other side of the page after writing. Or maybe just post other reviewers vids of the paper on your site
This is going to be a long comment so I apologize. I would love a paper education tool. What I have seen in previous videos is to have 5-7 pens inked with varying ink options and write them all on the same page. Use different sized nibs and some normal inks and some that are notoriously poorly behaved I. E. Baystate blue. Some people even use a sharpie for comparison. Close up shots to show feathering and photo of back of page for ghosting and bleed through. I probably spend 2 hours writing with a fountain pen daily. Question. How do u prioritize your orders. Do you go by the time they were ordered or if it’s a small order you push it to the front to move things along quickly??? I only ask because I placed an order on Saturday and it shipped the same day as everyone who bought the duraflex. Even though I ordered mine 2 business days before then we will get our orders on the same day. It’s not a big deal I’m just curious. Thanks so much for all you do.
bkstaudt great feedback on the paper, thank you! We prioritize orders purely by when they came in. The exception being orders that have expedited shipping, they move to the front of the line. What you had was sort of an extenuating circumstance. We were closed on Monday, so any orders placed from Friday afternoon on would only start shipping out on Tuesday. It’s possible my team hadn’t gotten to it until after the mail pickup came on Tuesday, so it didn’t get picked up until Wed. The Duraflexes launched wed but it took us until today to catch up. With a holiday week like this with a big product launch to boot, we were just a bit behind! I’m sorry! -Brian
The Goulet Pen Company totally forgot it was a holiday sorry I’m a nurse so we don’t really have holidays thanks for the quick response I always look forward to getting my packages from you guys Write on!! 😉👍🏻😆
Paper: I want Lined Tomoe River Paper. I'll take 52gsm or 68gsm, but it has to be stitch bound. Right now, Nanami Seven Seas Writers are sold out, and they are often so I had to order a Hipponoto Ivory notebook... Still wondering why you fellas aren't coming out with stitch bound Tomoe river notebooks. There's not a lot out there and they work with any writing utensil with a compact size... I wish you guys sold something. Hipponoto beat you to it, but they aren't making a full A5 right now... Would love it if I could buy a lined (college ruled or whatever space Seven Seas is) stitchbout Tomoe River Notebook. *hint* *hint*
Yeah, the Leadership Team usually has a book to read every few months. Last I remember was 'Good to Great' by Jim Collins (www.amazon.com/Good-Great-Some-Companies-Others/dp/0066620996/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519824254&sr=8-1&keywords=good+to+great ) - Colin
QOTW: 90 minutes. Really impressed with your business brain. I have always hated "that's the way we've always done it" it probably should be a red flag for everyone. If you ever decide to do a local gathering, maybe consider "selling" tickets. Small amount that could cover costs and/or raise money for charity but would get you a better idea of who and how many are serious about truly attending.🤓
Good video however I have to skip past your not attending shows and meetings talk, a little too much detail. Now back to cool and fun stuff I like about your videos. BTW, thanks for the recent order and bday acknowledgement.
Brian, did you ever take a marketing class at VT, I know it is no Darden, lol. Going to pen shows would help build your brand equity which is what your business is based on. You are the business and therefore people want to meet you. Perhaps you are not comfortable with your new found celebrity in the pen circle? The impressions you are able to create in person would far exceed the impact you could gather than a full day of filming videos. The cost of flying in for a day and flying out is low given the impact.
Corvette0430 I took some basic marketing classes at VT in 2004, can’t say that translated much to what I’m doing today! I’m not at all afraid of talking to folks, but with travel time you’re talking about 3 days for a show, minimum. That’s a lot of time considering family time and running GPC. If I shoot a video for an hour, it’s done and thousands of people can watch it essentially forever. In person, I can talk to maybe 10-15 people in the same time. It’s not apples to apples. -Brian
Love it when you dig into the nitty gritty of organization and strategy. Good stuff. "That's the way we've always done it" is a huge trigger for me. It just means "We don't want to spend the effort to think about how it could be better/faster/more efficient".
QOTW: I laughed when I heard the question, because most people I know outside of work may never pick up a pen the rest of the day. Being a nurse, everything is pretty much computerized. My co-workers consider me strange because I carry a pen case with me and several notebooks. I bullet journal, I can spend hours just journaling if I need to work out a specific issue I may have going on in life. I write out my blog posts before I type them. I literally wrote the book I'm working on before typing it up. On any given day, I can spend anywhere from 10 minutes to 3, 4, 5 hours or more, writing and don't get me started on how I get teased for journaling with a fountain pen. Great vid!!! TfS!!
Hey Brian and Goulet team, thanks again for another Q& A. As far as paper goes I have listed what I look for in paper:
1. Weight e.g. 120gsm
2. Ruling e.g. blank, french ruled, grid etc.
3. Colour e.g. bright white, cream
4. Binding e.g top wire, perfect, staple
5. Brand, manufacturer e.g. Rhodia dot pad with Clairefontaine paper
6. Cost
7. Ghosting
8. Bleed through
9. Can you use paint, ink etc (for art journaling)
10. Ease of tearing out
11. Smoothness
12. Feed back through pen when writing
13. Recommended use
I had a thought with ghosting and bleed through if you use the same pen, nib, ink with a quick sample of how other nibs with the same ink works. This way you have a base to compare different paper. Don't know if that helps but thanks for thinking of all the stationery junkies that this may mean a lot to them.
QOTW: I write heaps with a pen I also draw or include in my art practice so I would say a couple of hours a day. There is just something special about actually writing using pen and paper.
Brian has anyone at the office ever told you your voice is very calming
Devin Clark thanks! Haha, I’m such a ball of energy and kind of a disruptive force I doubt calming would be the go to descriptor for me from most of my team! But yeah, I’ve heard it from those who watch my videos :) -Brian
What a great video. I really admire your management style. It's very apparent that you care about your employees and business by investing time and effort to better yourself to lead everyone else to personal success. All that and still keeping your family in focus. Very respectable, keep up the good work Brian!!
It’s never unfortunate to put your family first as you decide how much time to invest in your business! I commend you for doing that. You have balance and discipline that brings much more satisfaction in your life and less likely to burn out on something you love! With that said, you can have live videos for people to FaceTime or send message questions in a live video. Just a thought, don’t know if you’ve already done that!
Lu Smith i end up jumping live on Instagram maybe once a week. -Brian
Regarding top-bound notebooks, when I took shorthand in school (back in the dark ages), we used the steno pads with the red center line. We were taught to write on one side of the page going from the front of the notebook to the back, then flip the notebook over and write on the other side of the page going from the back of the notebook to the front. By the way, the red center line was for taking notes in two columns. The reasoning was that one could write more quickly if one's hand only had to travel half the distance across the page, and shorthand is all about speed.
J. S. Matlock that is fascinating. I always wondered what that line was for in high school and apparently I occasionally used it “correctly” - writing on only ½ the page at a time that is
LOOOOOOL "I should be on a informercial where I can't figure out a notebook". Coffee out of the nose moment. Merci
Also, as an idea for a (note)book nook (paper palace? sheet suite?), you could do it very similarly to the nob nook, pick an average pen and ink combo, like a Safari with a medium nib and noodler's black and just take some close up shots of writing to show feathering, some of the back for ghosting/feathering, and a few dry time smudges. Things like smoothness are going to be too tactile to get an idea of on a computer screen, but those other factors are all things that most people want to know for paper. And while I'm not saying it's easy by any means, compared to the swab shop, pen plaza, and the nib nook, the varieties of paper you carry are significantly less numerous than those of pens and inks, so it wouldn't be quite as big of a task as those others.
Tangentially, it's genuinely soothing how you're matching the walls and Thermos and sundries. I was sitting here trying to figure out why I was so calm...
the comparison of notebooks would be a great idea :) they have something along those lines in jetpens for instance.
Question about papers:
1) Is it fast or slow drying/absorbent?
2) Does it allow sheen to show up?
3) How does it perform with very good/very bad performing ink
I have to say thank you for all your videos. Helping me along with my pen hobby. Keep it up.
On paper:
I work in a print shop, so I'm always stealing nice paper out of the recycling bin. When it comes to categorizing it, every company has their own quirks, but there are some basic parameters that all follow.
Smooth vs Linen vs Laid for texture. Smooth doesn't necessarily mean no texture, particularly when comparing writing or bond or copy paper.
Color and brightness also play a role. White papers aren't all the same (and yes, the customers will notice 😊). Ink will always look different on different papers.
We don't have to deal much with bleed-through, but there can be an issue of "see-through" with thin paper. I was curious about the difference between opaque and offset paper (different price points) and I believe the opaque gets a special coating that helps the paper not be so "see-through".
Assuming that y'all don't want to go down the rabbit hole of paper, I'd suggest sticking with only the types of paper you already would sell anyway. I'd rank them on a gradient of color. Then I'd test them just like you test inks. Pick a few "standard" inks that'd be used for all the paper tests and test for how much bleed through, how long it takes ink to dry, how well the ink shimmers and shades, etc. If all the papers show the same inks, they're more comparable.
Regarding the testing of paper. I think that is a good idea to try this, in the same way you have ink samples, and the nib nook. I don't think that would be too difficult to make happen. Simply use a most popular pen and three different nib sizes (F, M, B or 1.1). You could do a lot on one page, or even a half page. Do samples on each of your most popular papers. To make things interesting you might even do samples on some of the papers mentioned in the relevant feeds on FPN, such as notebooks, loose leaf papers, and copier papers sold at drug stores and office supply stores. Whether it's paper testing, ink swabs, or nib testing (nib nook), people still might have a different experience when they use them personally. I don't think it's possible to provide perfect online samples or renditions of inks, nibs and paper to please everybody, but I do believe it is possible to give us some pretty good indications on how ink, nibs, and even paper will perform in general. Just some thoughts.
QOTW. I write about an hour at work and about an hour at home. On the paper samples. Just standardize something and go with it. I would pick 6-10 pens with a variety of nib sizes. Wet and dry. Each with a different ink. From one extreme to the other. Adding a pencil and a sharpie would be useful. And then show the back of the paper as well.
I purchased my first fountain pen from your company. It is a Lamy Safari and it’s made me want more! I’ve been journaling since I was a child. As an adult I journal nearly every day about 15-30 mins. I also write with both my jobs taking notes! I’ve always loved to write, but I have arthritis now so I need a comfortable writing pen. I’m looking at a Twisby Eco, but still considering others. I now have several journals going! I’m sure I’ll be ordering again soon!
I think the Eco would make a great next pen! Writes really well & comfortable with long writing sessions. - Colin
You guys should do a podcast! It could be kind of informal, like Write Now, but it could also include snippets from your interviews with other pen poeple!
QOTW: I have my happy hour at the end of the day. Rarely miss one of my therapy sessions :)
Btw....nice ending 👍👍👍
I wanted to chime in on the second question about videos about paper and notebooks. I would very much enjoy the content but also sympathetic to the subjectivity and the difficulty of empirically describing the quality of the notebook.
To that effect, I offer a suggestion, format the notebook education series in the way of comparing one to another. The different combinations will give you a reference point of how one paper compares to another. The variety will ensure there are combinations for years to come. And from a business stand point this may encourage viewers to try different brands of paper for themselves if they find some kind of quality they find interesting.
QOTW: At work around 15 minutes a day taking quick notes here and there with the blue G-2s we keep in stock. For school at least an hour, sometimes 2, with my fountain pens! I have 3 classes a week and each are a 3 hour long lecture. Then there’s homework for one class that I do all handwritten as well.
Hey Brian, with the release of Lamy Vibrant Pink, I was wondering what are your favorite vibrant ink colors? I personally prefer dark magenta and green inks, but J. Herbin Rose Cyclamen has a special place in my heart. Thanks!
Brian, write a business organizational book telling your story, how you learned what you learned that helped you grow, all the while maintaining your vision, values, and goals. Just my suggestion. Your company is a fascinating case study of successfully transforming a passion into a livelihood. So many people (myself included) want to learn how it can be achieved!
Btw, to answer your q: I only use fountain pens, use em everyday, approximately an hour to an hour and a half a day of writing scattered throughout the day.
Or maybe a podcast/youtube series with leadership/ business running topics! You can see Brian has so much knowledge and passion for it!
Nubi Bulit Katchr thanks! I’ve definitely thought about it. Right now it’d be a bit of a distraction bc I’m so hands on with GPC , in the future tho I could see getting into that a bit. -Brian
Miss Defiance it’s been on my mind, for sure -Brian
I think this Brian's approach to the hobby > business transition has a lot to do with his engagement with social media and having a plan for this. He's Gen Y, and has leveraged the media of the day to reach and build his clientele. It's a smart, modern approach - but also risky, given the time and effort required to build and maintain an online presence and generate lots of content. If it doesn't work, it takes you away from other things required to grow and run a business. He's clearly done it well, and is knowledgeable and personable. If that didn't come naturally, his experience may have been different.
I was thinking the same thing while watching this video. I would love to read your story.
Being and having a focus for your business is critical ... It's always essential to do a cost benefit analysis but at the same time I believe that stepping out of the "comfort" zone is also very important - I work in a company and more often than not we land up saying "no, this idea doesn't seem to add value to the way we do business and what our focus is on" and sometimes we miss out on opportunities. However I've noticed that if we do something new or do the same thing differently it has really enhanced our customer connection and have conversations that may not have happened in the " usual" way we do business. In terms of business strategy we've moved from core competency to agile because we found that we had become less responsive and getting ahead is sometimes better than catching up with trends and changing customer needs. So in terms of pen retailers there seems to be those who are not strong online so pen shows means a whole lot in terms of revenue. Some have both offline and online presence and they still are present in pen shows ... They seem to derive some advantage from this. Currently, mainly driven by tech, customer buying behaviour is changing very quickly .. Omnichannel search, selection and purchase are the norm right now. So our clients have to change how they define " this is HOW we do business" ... For example P&G faces more competition from subscription services, direct to consumer sales and speciality/ small manufacturers via online presence than their traditional competition in stores. .. The growth of analogue and the new generation of potential customers for pens, ink and paper products are steeped in omnichannel buying behaviour ... It's not easy ...
I'm an account manager in high tech but I use my fountain pens in all meetings, bullet journaling my work and personal note books. Pretty much anytime I have a problem and need to work through to a solution I write it out. Or at the very least, I work on penmanship. so I'd estimate at least 4 hours everyday- almost exclusively in fountain pens.
You could possibly use a very common pen, like a Safari or Metropolitan with each different nib size to test paper. Maybe use the Noodler's Black since that's pretty standard for the nib nook.
Yeah I think that's probably the route to go. I think a Safari/AL-Star with the easily swappable nibs EF - 1.5mm makes sense. Something to think on! - Colin
I 100% agree with this. When he asked about feedback on how to standardize the paper tests, I immediately thought of Safaris and Metropolitans. And of course, Noodler's Black is a wonderful standard. I'm sure it won't be disappearing any time soon. Also, QOTW: I'm a college student and I write with my TWSBI Classic about 2 hours or so a day in class. I actually write with it so much, I'm looking for an upgrade to possibly a TWSBI Diamond 580AL though I'm not sure of the actual ink capacity difference.
I was thinking something similar. I do agree with the 580s too since especially the 1.1 can be a "gusher." Something like the "ink test" pages you guys do, but show the back too. Good for showing properties across paper too (sheen/shimmer on paperA vs paperB).
I, too, like this idea. One additional point: rest each sized nib on a page for 5 seconds, 20 seconds and a minute (or something like that) and then measure the size of the dot left behind.
If the pen-nib-ink-paper combination invites feathering, the dot will be quite large -- and quantifiable.
If the combination invites bleed through, then the dot may show up on the fourth page behind the subject page. Etc.
Thumbs up for @paks1969 question and these responses!
Death by Meeting is so great! He has a whole series of leadership parables that are supposed to be really good.
QOTW : 2-4 hours. Part of my job requires notes on the case I am processing (though technically my office is paperless) and I take notes at weekly and monthly meetings. Then at night I maintain my bullet journal and gratitude log which takes 30 minutes at least. Friends check weekly for ink choices and pen aquisitions. Besides a few technical pens, artist's gel pens, and novelty(Sheaffer Star Wars R2-D2) gel pens, I use fountain pens. It feels so fancy to write checks and thank you notes with a fountain pen.
Feathering, bleed through and show through are all important to me. There are so many possibilities -- you can use a finer nib for paper that isn't great, etc. I used the official Bullet Journal but the show through was making me crazy, so I changed to Erin Condren who has great paper. I've gotten into Travellers Notebooks and specifically match the subject to the paper. If i'm going a lot of watercolor, I sometimes buy inserts made of watercolor paper. The thicker version of Tomoe paper works okay for that. Anyway, good luck trying to sort all of this out. Love your videos.
We want paper test like the swab pads. Preferably with more known pens. Wet pens on certain paper, like Visconti, Pelikan, flex pens etc. And it would be cool if you did like extra fine to BB or something to that to see what kind of thickness would this paper work best with, most journals size ones people would probably just use EF or F to M anyway. but you never know :D
I’m a college student and on average writing for 3-4 hours a day. I usually go for medium nibs just because of how long my writing sessions can be.
Erin J. McFeeters I use fine or extra fine because I use terrible paper. I find that with a fine or extra fine nib I can get away with using a larger variety of inks without worrying about bleed through.
Most of my paper is coated so medium works pretty great!
Oh please come to the Triangle Pen Show in Raleigh! And bring the kids -- we have several cool museums!
Brian, I really enjoyed this video as I have all of your vids. QOTW: I probably spend a total of 15 to 20 minutes a day using a pen. Mostly my BIC Gelocity 0.7 in blue or black, but, also my fountain pens. One observation on this video; please turn down the volume on the background music score. The music is OK, but, at times, it drowns out your comments. NOW, I have a suggestion for you and Rachel. After listening to your comments about your business structure for company meetings, I truly believe that you and Rachel need to write a "company autobiography on your techniques for growing your business.....from the dining room to your present huge warehouse location. Reveal how you have incorporated the many different management books you've studied into your "Goulet" model of business organization and tailored leadership style. You could make the book available on your website as an eBook, down loadable for a fee. That would eliminate the expense of printing a physical book. There are possibly many folks who visit your website who are trying to start their own businesses and could use your and Rachel's incite. Especially, husband / wife teams. .
William Dungan Jr. thank you! I’m honored. Ebook could certainly be an option. I think eventually I will get there. Right now all my time and energy is focused on running GP but I could see it in the next couple of years. -Brian
How about the Chicago Pen show one year? Folks on both coasts have got to meet up with you and even down south (Atlanta). Us mid-westerners would love to meet ya!
Gordon Blanchard noted ;) -Brian
I second this motion! I'm planning to go to the Chicago Pen Show this year for my first pen show! I'd love to see you there.
Paper Feedback: I’d like to see, as a baseline, a ‘typical’ black ink like Noodlers executed with Fine, Medium, Broad, and Flex nib (same brand if possible) on each paper with a picture of the front and back of the page. Maybe the “quick brown fox” line written in each nib size. Beyond that, seeing a bright ink like a vivid red and a pale ink like light blue would also be good to see on each paper type. Maybe written in just a Medium nib.
I do quite a lot of quick notes at work, and I write for at least half an hour when I get home - sometimes longer, even hours on end.
I have a question: I few months back I bought a Faber-Castell converter for my Jinhao x750, after a few tries I pushed it pretty hard and I heard it click into position; so far so good, I had no issues with that combination.
I've now tried to fit the same converter into my new Faber-Castell Loom and I just couldn't. I've pushed as firmly as I've felt comfortable doing and it still didn't click; I've tried to use it as it was and the converter ended up rocking back and forth inside the body of pen, making a mess as soon as I unscrewed it to check the ink level.
Is this normal or is my pen/converter broken? Should I just push harder?
By the way, I love "write now" and your company as well as your own team; keep up the great work!
Love you guys! I'd like to see some paper comparisons at least in terms of which paper would be recommended for a particular purpose.
I'd also really love to see a hardbound a5 notebook with lots of pages in Tomoe River paper. I'd love to bullet journal with it.
I write fiction, so it varies a lot. I write with my fountain pens anywhere from 30 minutes to 8 hours a day. All of my rough drafts are handwritten. :)
Scrolled down quick through the questions in the description to the QOTW! I spend a good 2-3 hours a day writing with my pens. I’m a college student and a writer. So, my pens always get used ^_^
For people who want stenographer type notebooks, I found disc bound notebooks to work well. Some people don’t like them, but if you have your own punch, you can put the binding on the side or the top as you please, they lay flat, and the pages are easy to take out and put back in.
QOTW: Between 30m - 1hr a day fountain pen focus use during the week.
I'm a Technical Program Manager, so I keep a work-specific BuJo w/ project "dashboards", trackers, and quick notes... it varies, but from 5-20 min a day I'm using it. I keep my personal Passport TN in my purse for planner/collections/personal tracking and notes, and since I purchased the Some Lines a Day 5 year journal, and receiving the Clairefontaine notebook in the "Rachel daily carry" set, which I use to practice penmanship, my "opportunities" to write w/ a fountain pen increased.
I tend to limit ball point pen use to signing purchase receipts on thermal paper or filling out "official" forms.
LOL!!! 11:22 to 11:26 I got a good laugh out of this.
I work in a detail-oriented field. I spend about two to three hours a day actually writing with a pen. At least 30 minutes of that is purely for relaxation and contemplation.
As for meet ups... I'm not in the area, so this is just a random shot in the dark, but I live in an area that has a FABULOUS library system. You could do an event at a library, and it could serve as PR for you as well for random library go-ers who may stumble across your event.
After falling in love with fountain pens because of this channel, I think i've finally came up with a question that I can't settle on. I recently watched your Travel Pens: Backpacking Edition video about certain pens and papers are good for traveling. Since that video 2 years ago, what would you say would be some (updated) pens or paper that would do well traveling now? Anything that stands out?
I think with paper, the colour of the paper is really important whether it's white white or more of an off white or more a cream. Then if it is 'treated' so the ink flows on top. And then lastly just some pen tests on how much bleeds through/ feathers. Because when using fountain pens that's the most important.
QOTW: It really depends. There are days when I don't write anything, and there are days when I write 3-4 hours in one go. I use a fountain pen as much as possible due to ergonomic reasons. It took me a while to find really comfortable pens for myself.
I never really thought much about the Mnemosyne notebooks cause I’d never heard them mentioned or seen any reviews, then for Xmas this year my sister randomly got me a N182 graph book, and within a page it became my favorite fountain pen-friendly notebook. I definitely back the quick mention in this video :)
QOTW: 15 mins! Notes at work. I keep a diary too, but it's in a short "soldier's" format, just documenting goings on and routine.
For QOTW, I spent a good deal of my day with my pens. I homeschool the kids and feel like I am always using them between grading and planning. Probably 2 to 3 hours or more on school days.
If you come to the Raleigh Pen show I will definitely come to meet you!!!
QOTW: I write some every day; but, I don't use a stop watch to keep track of the time spent actually writing. I have to think about something before I write it down. If the phone rings before I'm done writing, I will spend time talking on the phone. After my phone conversation, I discover that there are doodles on the paper. I had not been aware that I had been doodling. Doodling is almost second nature. If I am working on a letter to send to a friend or relative, I have to ask myself if I want to share the doodles or not. If not, then I start the letter over. It seems like there are times when I do a lot of writing; but, I don't actually get a lot written. My guess is 15-20 minutes; probably more if I count the doodles.
I probably write for 45 minuets a day, usually with a LAMY either all-star or safari, because they write well... I have maybe 10 fountain pens the vanishing point being my most expensive. I write on either Clairefontaine or Rhoda A5 standard A5 in a TN cover. I really liked this video, it’s good to step back and think about focus, thank you.
QOTW - That's hard to say, but I intentionally use my pens as much as possible. When I write my sermons I write them long hand, as I believe it helps my thought processes, then I make it digital (ya know, keyboard it into my computer). I also am working on writing some books, so of course I must write them out first.
QotW - my writing time can vary depending on my day at work - I would probably say at least a couple of hours a day up to 10 hours. The long days I am glad I write with a fountain pen and also I have a fitbit to remind me to get up and move every hour.
Hi Brian and Goulet Team. As I was stalking, I mean following, my order from Goulet Pens I wondered, does the post office send an empty truck to you for pick up or do you have a large vehicle that someone has to load and take to the post office? Also aside from Christmas sales is there another typically busy sales season for you? Love the Q & As and Write Now, keep them coming.
Someone from the Post Office comes to our building to pick up. We have huge bins filled to orders that just go right on the truck! Any big launch days (usually LAMY Safari/Al-Star) are usually very busy around here. Just had one last week with the Conklin Duraflex. - Colin
Thank you for the quick reply Colin. I saw the huge bins in the Goulet Tour video. Mind boggling. Maybe a video of a big launch shipment going out in the future?
I would like a photo of front and back of the page for each notebook. Front could have a few sample words with a standardized ink and pen for a few different nib sizes, so I could see feathering, then just take a pic of the back so you see ghosting and bleed. Jetpens does something similar and I find it really helpful.
Meetings to talk about meetings.....corporate america. Sounds like you have a great grasp on it. It annoys me when a meeting doesn't have an agenda....this is a necessity.
QOTW: I am just getting into the fountain pen world. In fact, my first fountain pen will be arriving today(2/24/18). I spend roughly 1-1.5 hours a day writing with an actual pen between work and jotting stuff down at home or around town. I always have a pen and something to write on with me.
But, as a new user, what is considered the best black, quick drying ink? As this will be my most used ink I need to know what I should order. Thanks for the content and information.
Noodler's Bernanke Black is probably the best option. That is in the line of quick-drying inks from Noodler's. Beyond that, Pilot Iroshizuku Take-sumi is one I've found to dry pretty quickly. - Colin
Not a paper review tool specifically, but it would be helpful if you shared photos of the back of the paper when you post ink reviews. Since you guys are already using the ink in those reviews on a few different papers, that would give some ideas of how that particular ink might behave on different paper. At least with ghosting or bleed through.
How to test and compare paper I do not know. But one thing I think would be a blessing would be: standardised measurements of line width produced by different nibs. We all know that "EF", "M" or "BBB" alone mean close to nothing, given that different manufacturers have a very personal idea of what this all stands for. If your idea of EF is the Preppy 0.2, then a Pelikan EF is like writing with a lipstick (or, vice-versa, with a needle). What I would do is: pick a consistent paper (say, Rhodia, but a more run-of-the-mill paper would probably be even more useful), pick a widely available ink (say, Pelikan Königsblau) and pop it in the pen to test, draw a line (ideally with a writing robot, but I guess the same person would also do) and measure it with some sort of microscope or loupe and micrometric scale (not at all expensive or difficult to find and use). Then with the measurement we would know that Lamy EF is (say) 0.53, TWSBI EF is 0,40 and so on. Of course ink and paper would change everything, but at least we would have a reasonable, objective baseline when making our choices. I appreciate the nib nook as a tool for trying to make sense of nib sizes, but still it will never be as clear and as universal in interpretation as a raw number could be. I'm surprised nobody has ever tried this, I would certainly give it a go, if I sold pens!
For the paper, I'd just like to see how a wet writing nib/ink looks on it. Like the Edison Medium nibs for example. Those leave a lot of ink behind and not all papers can handle it well. I'd like to see a shot of what the paper does in that sort of scenario.
I think it would be great to have not so much educational material as "recommended products" pages. For example, maybe a blog post that recommends paper for students, business professionals, quick notes, traveling, etc. I could see that being a really popular resource, especially for new users who don't really know what they're getting.
For a meetup... what if you sold tickets and donated the proceeds to a charity (something pen related maybe). You could have raffles and gift bags or silent auctions. And ticket sales would be limited so you would have a set number of people attend.
QOTW: depends a bit on the day and what I'm doing. I'm in a tech field so computers are commonplace for communication and work purposes. most of my personal notes on how something needs to be done are done with pen and paper though. so most days I would say about 15 minutes writing with pen and paper. some days a couple hours.
i love these Q&A videos keep up the good work, for how many min i spend writing in one day is about 60 min. i have some days is less and then i have other days i wright more.
4:22 it's really hard to make heavy pens which are good writers imho. I think the only company which really nailed them is the german Online-Pen company which manage to produce heavy well balanced pens which also don't get too rear heavy when posted.
11:20 this is the best since the uncooked beans episode with Drew!
Good comments on paper, Brian. There are too many variables for you to do comprehensive testing and demos, but how about developing a check-list for customers to do the own tests? You can guide on paper weights, caliper, finish, etc., and suggest the types of tests they could perform for bleed, feathering, drag, etc. Sort of a Paper 101.
QoTW: in a normal work day in office not more than 15-20 mins, and on days that I write my journal at home that's about about 45-60 minute session with my journal ... If I'm practising my drills instead of my journal writing, these are at least 30-45 minutes sessions.... I try to use my fountain pens all the time , but I do carry a ballpoint/rollerball and a pencil as well...
As far as paper goes, I'd love to know about how well more lubricated inks behave on them, how well shading and sheen show up, etc.
Top bound notebooks: Rhodia also makes a spiral top-bound notebook (which Goulet carries). I've used it and strongly prefer it to the staple-bound pads.
www.gouletpens.com/rhodia-notebooks/c/248/?sortBy=productName%2Basc&facetValueFilter=Tenant~Binding_Orientation%3Atop%2CTenant~Binding_Type%3Awirebound
Rhoida also makes a perfectly square spiral-bound notebook called "Reverse" that you can use top-bound if you like.
www.rhodiapads.com/collections_spiral_reverse.php
45 min with ball point pen, 15 with fountain pen during the week, then probably an hour with fountain pen over the course of the weekend
Brian is there any way you can do a “how to flex” vid with your team to celebrate the Duraflex launch in a write now or as a fountain pen 101 (I’m struggling to learn how to use my new Duraflex #349
Definitely something we hope to tackle here soon! More flex content for sure. - Colin
Thanks
Meet ups can be done outside at like a park or something. I've seen many UA-camrs do meetups like that and it works out great.
alohaboy96 now that’s not a bad idea! Just weather tho. -Brian
Definitely around an hour (or more) because I have classes and I also journal
QOTW: Probably 2 hours per day. As a homeschool teacher, I am writing research notes, developing lectures and grading stuff. I use almost exclusively fountain pens - a ball point pen feels unnatural at this point.
I spend roughly an hour a day writing with my Twsbi Eco. Weather its at work or at home.
QOTW I would say that on average I spend an hour a day writing with either a fountain pen or an ink pen that I made. As a college student I have days were I am taking lots of notes and others where I am typing up reports or other documents. I use a fountain pen for all my notes and scratch work when needed and my ink pen in my design notebook for my senior project since they wanted a specific notebook and it is almost the worst paper for a fountain pen lol
I guess, i will spend around 1.5 hours writing with my pens, usually i switch between Lamy 2000 for work related matter, Noodlers Neponset to take notes and quick sketch and a Pelikano to train my son the cursive writing.
QOTW: I know I'm pretty late (new to the channel) but I average about 100 to 300 minutes a day with a pen (usually a dip pen). Not necessarily writing, but I use it to ink images I draw.
I would like to see different papers compared to ink that does not behave well at all. So in this case it might be 54th Massachusetts, I've had that bleed and feather on Rhodia paper. Take for example if we used X-feather, it would be really hard to visually see the difference because it works well on all paper, from my experience. And maybe compare slightly sheening inks like Yama-Budo to see how different papers compare.
QOTW - It can vary quite a bit from day to day. Some days I barely write at all. Other days I am writing all day. It all depends on what I am doing.
"hang out and play pens" I'LL BE THERE!!!
Not sure I follow the notepad shape reasoning - all books are shaped that way, it's just the page turning 'mechanism' that differs. Some types of book also go two-column per page to make them more vertical? Confused...
Pen show(and Tell) allows you to show us pens we may be on the fence about, which in turn leads us to you "online" store.
All I care about is feathering, bleed through, I can deal with ghosting/show-through but bleed through and feathering is important. So maybe do polls to find out the most popular pen, ink and nib size combo and then use that as the demonstration standard. Post photos or vids of the other side of the page after writing. Or maybe just post other reviewers vids of the paper on your site
3hrs average. A short day would probably be 30 mins but a long day would be around 5-6hrs. I'm a student QOTW
This is going to be a long comment so I apologize. I would love a paper education tool. What I have seen in previous videos is to have 5-7 pens inked with varying ink options and write them all on the same page. Use different sized nibs and some normal inks and some that are notoriously poorly behaved I. E. Baystate blue. Some people even use a sharpie for comparison. Close up shots to show feathering and photo of back of page for ghosting and bleed through.
I probably spend 2 hours writing with a fountain pen daily.
Question. How do u prioritize your orders. Do you go by the time they were ordered or if it’s a small order you push it to the front to move things along quickly??? I only ask because I placed an order on Saturday and it shipped the same day as everyone who bought the duraflex. Even though I ordered mine 2 business days before then we will get our orders on the same day. It’s not a big deal I’m just curious. Thanks so much for all you do.
bkstaudt great feedback on the paper, thank you!
We prioritize orders purely by when they came in. The exception being orders that have expedited shipping, they move to the front of the line. What you had was sort of an extenuating circumstance. We were closed on Monday, so any orders placed from Friday afternoon on would only start shipping out on Tuesday. It’s possible my team hadn’t gotten to it until after the mail pickup came on Tuesday, so it didn’t get picked up until Wed. The Duraflexes launched wed but it took us until today to catch up. With a holiday week like this with a big product launch to boot, we were just a bit behind! I’m sorry! -Brian
The Goulet Pen Company totally forgot it was a holiday sorry I’m a nurse so we don’t really have holidays thanks for the quick response I always look forward to getting my packages from you guys Write on!! 😉👍🏻😆
Paper: I want Lined Tomoe River Paper. I'll take 52gsm or 68gsm, but it has to be stitch bound. Right now, Nanami Seven Seas Writers are sold out, and they are often so I had to order a Hipponoto Ivory notebook... Still wondering why you fellas aren't coming out with stitch bound Tomoe river notebooks. There's not a lot out there and they work with any writing utensil with a compact size... I wish you guys sold something. Hipponoto beat you to it, but they aren't making a full A5 right now... Would love it if I could buy a lined (college ruled or whatever space Seven Seas is) stitchbout Tomoe River Notebook. *hint* *hint*
rlv05001 until Goulet takes your hint, you can find notebooks with lined TR paper on Etsy
I couldn't find anything that wasn't staple bound though. There's plenty of dot grid options and very white paper, which I'm not the biggest fan of.
Brian Goulet has talked about the books he reads for business management. Does he have book recommendations for his leadership team members?
Yeah, the Leadership Team usually has a book to read every few months. Last I remember was 'Good to Great' by Jim Collins (www.amazon.com/Good-Great-Some-Companies-Others/dp/0066620996/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519824254&sr=8-1&keywords=good+to+great ) - Colin
Thank you 😊
QOTW- I write for at least 1 1/2 to 2 hours every day. About half of that is with a fountain pen. I’ve done this for years.
QOTW: 90 minutes. Really impressed with your business brain. I have always hated "that's the way we've always done it" it probably should be a red flag for everyone. If you ever decide to do a local gathering, maybe consider "selling" tickets. Small amount that could cover costs and/or raise money for charity but would get you a better idea of who and how many are serious about truly attending.🤓
Rhoda offer the reverse book which is 21x21 cm and works great for lefty.
Thanks, gonna give one a try.
A year ago during highschool I´d say maybe about 3h on average with a fountain pen. Right now between 0-30 min.
Good video however I have to skip past your not attending shows and meetings talk, a little too much detail. Now back to cool and fun stuff I like about your videos. BTW, thanks for the recent order and bday acknowledgement.
I didn't like the music over Brian's sign off or the thumbnail. I'd rather hear him. :)
Appreciate that feedback! - Colin
Colin
I liked the music. 🎼 Please ignore Kimberly. 😉
Brian, did you ever take a marketing class at VT, I know it is no Darden, lol. Going to pen shows would help build your brand equity which is what your business is based on. You are the business and therefore people want to meet you. Perhaps you are not comfortable with your new found celebrity in the pen circle? The impressions you are able to create in person would far exceed the impact you could gather than a full day of filming videos. The cost of flying in for a day and flying out is low given the impact.
Corvette0430 I took some basic marketing classes at VT in 2004, can’t say that translated much to what I’m doing today! I’m not at all afraid of talking to folks, but with travel time you’re talking about 3 days for a show, minimum. That’s a lot of time considering family time and running GPC. If I shoot a video for an hour, it’s done and thousands of people can watch it essentially forever. In person, I can talk to maybe 10-15 people in the same time. It’s not apples to apples. -Brian
Probably 30-45 minutes. The largest chunk is morning journaling for 15-20.
Digestion over Starvation? Great line, I like it.