Editing The Pen Addict 456/transcript (section)

== Email Chat ==


'''Brad:''' Well, we've had an email chat. Email. Okay. Right. So, we've done emails saying, hey, you know, here we are. You know, just wanted to say hi. Give us a couple months. Because we were talking about like wanting to talk with them, maybe interview somebody. And they're like, give us, you know, let us get settled in a little bit more. Because we contacted them like the day of or the day after the announcement. They wanted to get settled in. And what I wanted to do is just have like an introductory call. So, we set up a Zoom. There was five of us, myself. And then it was the new owners, which are Adam, Jeff, and Joe. And then Richard, which is, you know, Retro 51's long, long time designer. That's who I work with the most is Richard when I'm working on a product. Or if I have questions or need something. So, we all got on a Zoom, I don't know, a week ago or so. And I had no expectations going in. And like I said, this wasn't an interview. This wasn't anything. But hey, this is who we are. This is what we're doing. Kind of thing. Yeah. It's getting to know you session. And I thought it went really well. They are definitely all in on this. I felt like my curiosity is, and I think a lot of, for a lot of people, is what's going to change, right? New owners, let's see, you know, are they going to change things? And the feeling I got from talking to them is that there will be almost no change in what the outside world knows as Retro 51 is the feeling I got. They wanted to be a steward of the brand, right, of the existing brand and see it forward to continue being what it is right now and then continue that on. Not, you know, put their own stamp on it, right? Not say, hey, we're Adam, Jeff, and Joe, and this is our version of Retro 51. They want to take Retro 51 as it is, continue it on, continue the successes that they've had.

'''Brad:''' You know, one of the things they mentioned, which, you know, they didn't have any control of the number of launches last year, and they know that was far, far too much. So I think we'll see a more normal Retro 51 cycle going forward. I hope we do.

'''Myke:''' It kind of seemed like they were clearing out the old business, right? Yeah. The previous owners. Clearing the ledger. Settling all family business. As they would say.

'''Brad:''' Mm-hmm. So now I think they're in the position to move forward. You know, I think we'll see some work on some of the existing popular lineups that they have.

'''Brad:''' You know, I was, I've done a Retro 51 Panatic model for, what, four years in a row now? I think, and I was thinking about just skipping this year. Number one, because I'm busy, and number two, I was like wanting to see, let's just see how this goes, right? And now I'm more leaning back to, well, I've got a good idea for a pin that I want to make, so maybe I will work on that this year. So we'll see. But anyway.

'''Myke:''' Well, so when they're talking about the number of launches, are we talking overall all the launches from Retro 51 or what? Like.

'''Brad:''' Is there a difference? I might be missing your question.

'''Myke:''' Well, yeah, because like you doing a Retro 51 is super different to like them doing one or.

'''Brad:''' No, from Retro 51. Okay. I think those are two separate things. I see what you're saying. Yes.

'''Myke:''' So they're not going to like necessarily slow down on the store exclusives. The influencer pens, all that kind of stuff is probably going to remain. We'll take whatever business seems right. But when it comes down to like, here's a new one that we've got and it's at multiple places, that's what they're going to maybe calm down on.

'''Brad:''' I think that's a fair reading of the situation.

'''Myke:''' Okay. I mean, the thing is, though, like it is difficult to tell from the outside sometimes, like the difference between them. You know what I mean? Like it's hard to work out like which one is a Retro 51 model and which one is like the Goldspot model, the Pen Chalet model. You know, like it's going to be hard to pin that down.

'''Brad:''' Yeah, I agree with that. So it wasn't mentioned specifically that there was like a separation of that. My gut tells me more the stock versions of the releases. I don't know. Yeah, we'll have to see if the custom versions get metered at all. Like, I don't know. I didn't ask that specifically. But that's actually a good question I should follow up on. So I think that's fair, right? At what point do we turn away or at least hold or delay some of the business just to ensure that the overall brand itself is healthy, right?

'''Myke:''' Right. But then there's like the other question of if they're all selling out every time, then what's the harm? Right, right. That's the balance. That's the difficult balance to strike. It is. Did you ask them why they're called poppers? I didn't. I noticed this like on their account that they said like we got popper releases and I just have never gotten my head around that name.

'''Brad:''' To this day, I'm thoroughly confused on that whole situation.

'''Myke:''' It doesn't. That doesn't make any sense to me. Maybe they should just have like poppers and twisters, but they don't make the poppers anymore, which was the retractable ones. Like the click retractable ones.

'''Brad:''' Click ones, yeah. Their clicks were always a little rattly, so I'm okay with that.

'''Myke:''' I think they were using the Schmidt system. That's why. I would wager. Because I used the version of the Mark 1 with that system. Yeah. And it was also not nice to use. Yeah. Which is why Tom and Dan went down the vision quest that they did to design and custom manufacture their own knock for the Mark 1, which is I think the pen's major selling point. And that's why it took so long to make because the one that Schmidt makes for the refill, it kind of sucks.

'''Brad:''' Yeah, I think everyone who's gone down that path and takes the making of pen seriously has been either scrapped that in the beginning or is one and done saying, no, that's really not the best solution. Let's roll our own. So that's good.

'''Myke:''' While we were on Retro 51 though, I did see a store edition, which I just thought was beautiful, which is the Gold Spot one. They have an avocado edition and it is really just like simple, but beautiful.

'''Brad:''' Yeah, I agree. Like this, the nickel plated or what is this? I don't know what they call this. The darker pewter or nickel. It looks great. I honestly, when the lead image of this, I thought it was going to be an April Fool's joke. Because it's just a pen and an avocado.

'''Myke:''' Yeah, I don't really know why they've done that. I don't know why that's the first image, but such is life, I suppose.

'''Brad:''' And I was like, oh, it's real and it's actually really sharp looking. So it's really good. They did a whole set of gradient ones earlier or late last year. I'm actually giving one away on penaddict.com this week. I think they're really neat. I like the gradient color ideas. Also doing that keeps them ombre, the ombre series. Ombre series. Is it ombre or ombre? I don't know. Yeah, I think it's ombre. But I don't know. Chad will let us know. But anyway, cool series. And if you do that, that keeps the price point lower, right? So these are the more, not the starter, because you can still get tornado lacquers for cheaper. But if you're getting into store brands and things, this is a better price point. Then once you start getting the serious artwork and stuff like that, you get up into the $50 range, which is still really, really good.

'''Myke:''' All right, should we take our first break? Let's do it. All right, this episode is brought to you by our friends over at Harry's. You know Harry's. Brad loves Harry's, and we're going to hear from him in a minute. Because look, you shouldn't have to choose between having a great shave experience and having to pay a fair price for it. But Harry's doesn't want you to have to make that choice, so they give you both. Harry's delivers a close, comfortable shave at a great price, which is still as low as $2 per refill. And for a limited time, Harry's is offering their starter set, plus a free travel size body wash at harrys.com slash penaddict, just for listeners of this show. Harry's is a young brand, but they've embraced centuries of blade making tradition. They bought a German razor blade factory that has been making their own blades for over 100 years. These craftspeople grind strong steel into a gothic arch shape, creating a blade that is strong at the base and sharp at the tip. Harry's believes in no gimmicks or unnecessary features, so their design team combined the parts that you really want, the essential parts, a good weighted ergonomic handle with a textured grip and a flexible hinge. It's a smart, simple razor designed for delivering a close shave along every contour of your face. Harry's has their fair price, like this is what they believe in. So owning their means of production and using only the most crucial features allows them to keep their prices as low as $2 per refill. They don't add in the stuff that you don't want, and they also stand behind the quality of their blades with a 100% money back guarantee. Brad, can you tell our listeners a little bit about Harry's?