another landmark of manliness disappears

Sad news in my newspaper this morning: Caron -a high class vendor of all things man and the last but one independently owned shop in the main shopping street in my home town Ghent, Belgium- will close down in march.
The owners have finally succombed to the bids of big real estate agents operating for big clothing chains. Caron is -was- the last shop in the Veldstraat (transl.: Field Street) that you could'nt find in the next town and the one next to that. Caron sells -sold- just about everything a gentleman requires: from shaving brushes to cuff links, from sigars to Laguiole knives, from suspenders to pipes, Caron had it all. At a gentlemanly price, ofcourse; if you have to ask, you can't afford it.
I have some mixed emotions about this. Part of me feels that a bit of the soul of the town I grew up in has died. Caron was one of those places that made Ghent unique. And it made a difference in my life too: I bought my first real shaving soap there (D.R.Harris, still my favorite) and whenever I needed sigars for someone important, I looked no further than Caron. When my first son was born, where do you think I bought a shaving set for my closest nephew who was to be his godfather?
But then again I feel I shouldn't complain. Am I not the pharisee who ran to the closest online store that sold my Marlborough at almost half the price? Didn't I buy my Opinel pocket knife at an outdoor shop at a discount? Did I not stop smoking cigars for fear of relapsing into cigarette addiciton?
Surely, Caron's display window was a beautiful sight to behold while the misses (girlfriend in those days) was shoe shopping. But if even a man like myself, who appreciates quality and manly comforts, hardly ever has the courage to enter that realm of thick carpets and bon-chique-bon-genre atmosphere, something must be wrong.
In today's world you can't charge a premium for treating your customers like the plebeians you know they are from judging the wool of their coats. In the 21st century, some men like cuff links and some men like sigars. And both are readily available to any man if he searches for them. Shops like Caron are distinctly 20th (maybe even 19th) century. They thrive on a certain atmosphere of distinction, yes even class separation. What Caron sells (sold) was not badger brushes or suspenders but an air of bougeoisie that has lost its importance. Men today don't smoke sigars to look good, they do so to enjoy themselves. As a consequence, Caron's clientele aged while their potential customers sought refuge online.
Will I really miss Caron? Yes, I'll miss their display window, but I'm afraid I won't miss shopping there. Although I will certainly check out the sales, I'm really set on a shaving brush with the Caron logo.

Arnoud said:

Caron is -was- the last shop in the Veldstraat (transl.: Field Street) that you could'nt find in the next town and the one next to that.

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Finding the same shops in every city in the country was something that I thought was unique to The States. I'm in the military and, at least here in the states, that means moving across the country every few years. As I've gotten older, I've come to resent the fact that whenever I move, I can count on having the same stores, the same restaurants, the same grocers everywhere. It's harder and harder to find unique stores, but make the effort to support them. The local business in the town where I grew up came up with a marketing campaign trying to encourage people to shop the local stores, their slogan was/is "Keep Austin weird."

KDGage said:

Finding the same shops in every city in the country was something that I thought was unique to The States. I'm in the military and, at least here in the states, that means moving across the country every few years. As I've gotten older, I've come to resent the fact that whenever I move, I can count on having the same stores, the same restaurants, the same grocers everywhere. It's harder and harder to find unique stores, but make the effort to support them. The local business in the town where I grew up came up with a marketing campaign trying to encourage people to shop the local stores, their slogan was/is "Keep Austin weird."

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So true. In my home town a local restaurant is being replaced by Hooters. Not that I have anything against Hooters, but what is happening to our local places?

In the past two years I have seen more unique stores, restaurants, etc. close down only to be replaced by a vacant store front or a chain.

I've experienced the same thing in my hometown. Whenever I go back, more and more community fixtures have been replaced. The sad thing is that the city council actively PETITIONED wal-mart to open a superstore in the city. That one alone shut down probably dozens of local businesses, and further depressed the economy for short-term job creation.

ackvil said:

So true. In my home town a local restaurant is being replaced by Hooters. Not that I have anything against Hooters, but what is happening to our local places?

In the past two years I have seen more unique stores, restaurants, etc. close down only to be replaced by a vacant store front or a chain.

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As our country's economic power crumbles, you can expect more. The "same" is cheaper. It is sad for someone who has lived during our heyday. I feel sorry for the younger generations.

oc_in_fw said:

As our country's economic power crumbles, you can expect more. The "same" is cheaper. It is sad for someone who has lived during our heyday. I feel sorry for the younger generations.

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By pretty much all objective measures, we're doing better than we've ever done.

I like to think that every time I use my vintage Superspeed in lieu of some multi-bladed thing, or order from one of the small vendors linked here that I'm striking a blow against corporate homogenization.

One, I absolutely love Ghent. Brugges and Ghent are my favourite two places I've been in Belgium. Two, this sounds really familiar. I can't quite place it but I swear I was in this store.

justinp said:

By pretty much all objective measures, we're doing better than we've ever done.

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are we really? We have shipped all of our manufacturing overseas, and are so consumer driven that all we want is cheap, chinese made crap. China and India are the next economic superpowers, we are on the downhill slide.

Arnoud said:

Will I really miss Caron? Yes, I'll miss their display window, but I'm afraid I won't miss shopping there. Although I will certainly check out the sales, I'm really set on a shaving brush with the Caron logo.

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As a group, we probably have more ties with and more of a feeling for the past than lots of other groups of men. The fact that we bother to shave in a slower old-fashioned way testifies to that. I am always saddened to hear of the closing of another store (of whatever type) with some sort of history because I don't enjoy visiting other cities and seeing the same "high street" shopping as here at home.
I would suggest Arnoud, that you run into Caron ASAP and purchase yourself that shaving brush if your budget stretches to it. You will have and enjoy the brush for many years and to miss out on one because you were waiting for a discount would be a shame.

djh said:

I would suggest Arnoud, that you run into Caron ASAP and purchase yourself that shaving brush if your budget stretches to it. You will have and enjoy the brush for many years and to miss out on one because you were waiting for a discount would be a shame.

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I wholeheartedly agree, if you can afford it of course. And get the owner to sign it if you can! It would truly be a piece of history in your hand and a testament to simpler days.

justinp said:

By pretty much all objective measures, we're doing better than we've ever done.

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How much is the U.S. in debt to China nowadays?

That aside, the same problem exists here in the UK. You wouldn't believe how many local shops get closed and replaced with fast food takeaways.

KDGage said:

Finding the same shops in every city in the country was something that I thought was unique to The States. I'm in the military and, at least here in the states, that means moving across the country every few years. As I've gotten older, I've come to resent the fact that whenever I move, I can count on having the same stores, the same restaurants, the same grocers everywhere. It's harder and harder to find unique stores, but make the effort to support them. The local business in the town where I grew up came up with a marketing campaign trying to encourage people to shop the local stores, their slogan was/is "Keep Austin weird."

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Yup...While I was in Canada in the 90's during my uni days. I visited a number of cities around the Niagara region. It became apparent that I am seeing the same stores in almost every city between Windsor and Ottawa. After returning to Singapore, was quite surprise that the same trend is happening over here. In almost every major mall here, I see the same names over and over again. It's to the extend many food courts and some food stalls are chained or franchised.

rajagra said:

How much is the U.S. in debt to China nowadays?

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At last check it just went down to $755.4 billion from $801.5 billion . At least from what sources I have read. But at least they are number now we still have $768.8 billion with Japan

djh said:

As a group, we probably have more ties with and more of a feeling for the past than lots of other groups of men. The fact that we bother to shave in a slower old-fashioned way testifies to that. I am always saddened to hear of the closing of another store (of whatever type) with some sort of history because I don't enjoy visiting other cities and seeing the same "high street" shopping as here at home.
I would suggest Arnoud, that you run into Caron ASAP and purchase yourself that shaving brush if your budget stretches to it. You will have and enjoy the brush for many years and to miss out on one because you were waiting for a discount would be a shame.

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I agree, also.

More than 35 years ago the World Trade Center in NYC has a Hoffrtriz store that sold knives, shaving gear, and related merchandise. It was a treasure trove of goodies that you could find nowhere else. And then one day when I was on my way to work I saw a store closing sign go up on the store front. I had been a customer of the store but a few items I always wanted were too expensive for me at the time. At lunch time I visited the store and bought a shaving brush at 40% off and I still use it today. I also bought a straight razor that I eventually sold and some kitchen knives, a fishing knife, and scissors.

Hoffritz was replaced by a store - but for the life of me I don't recall what it sold.

I last shaved with that brush on Friday and at that time thought about the day I bought the brush. Back then I was a lot younger, had children at home, and lived in what I called the country part of NJ. Brings back some nice memories.

Thanks for the interesting reminiscence. Being American, I did not know of Caron, but I know the sort of store. It was the kind of store where "May I help you sir?" from a salesman somehow sounded like "What are you doing in here?" And yet the selection of items was fascinating, and before the Internet, where else would one go to find an assortment of high quality products in one place? The snobbery might be off-putting, and yet it was good to know that there were places like that.

Slivovitz, i can relate to what you're saying. going into The AOS store, i always get the "can i help you sir", like what am i doin here. of course when i open my mouth about my taste in shaving, they leave me alone and let me look and buy .

KDGage said:

Finding the same shops in every city in the country was something that I thought was unique to The States.

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This was a trend I first noticed some 30+ years ago. Back then everywhere you went (and I'm only talking within the USA) was unique. Had it's own flavor. it was exciting to travel somewhere new and see what people had there, you'd never heard of. Unique foods and products of every kind.

There was no Internet! (something anyone under 30 probably can't even conceive of?) So most everything people needed was either provided by a local merchant or occasionally ordered from a catalog (more rare and cumbersome than the Internet but for areas of lower population, it's all we had). It gave people a reason to travel to "the city" (whatever that meant to the specific area). In "the city" you could generally find most anything your local community didn't offer. But each "city" was unique. Sure, most had a Sears and a JCP. But other "department" stores were, at most, regional (Saks, Lorde & Taylor, Macy's and such)

There were a few chains, KMart, McD, Burger King and such, but they hardly dominated every street corner as they do today. But it was the beginning of the end of that way of life. Over the next ten years, a homonogization of society (probably caused by a very mobile population and increased desire of larger companies to enter every single market) occurred and by 20 years ago, I was having trouble telling one town from the next. Every town had a Walmart, an Applebys, 52 Starbucks, a Home Depot, a Lowes and ALL of the surviving department stores, usually huddled together in "the Mall".

Then, of course, the Internet happened and anyone could now find anything from anywhere. I love that, of course. I think most of us do. But for the smaller stores that managed to survive the unification movement by offering a unique selection of products, it was the end. Not only does the Internet offer more variety than any shop could hope to, but they could never compete on price.

There is a new trend I see emerging though. One that gives Some small hope to the local merchant, though they will never be the tour de force they once were. This trend is an Internet business with a store front. It won't be local to most people but it does give a local store the economic base to survive.

I'm sorry to hear of the passing of what sounds like a fascinating store. It sounds like one of the last of a dying breed.

Ken

@blackfoot: if you've been to Ghent and you're a member of this forum, you have definately been to this shop. Here's a pic of the shop as it is now: http://www.cityzine.be/nl/gidsen/gent/shopping/caron
this is how it looked when men were men and cars were for the sissies that didn't know how to handle a carriage:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Veldstraat%2C_Ghent,_Belgium.jpg
@djh: they charge 95 € for a silvertip, that's not going to hurt me so I'll pay a -mourning- visit this week.
@jethro: good idea about the autograph, maybe I should buy two brushes: one to shave and one to save for selling on ebay when I'm short on dough. Just wish I'd been to that shop more. Like Janis Joplin said: don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got till it's gone?

It is definately sad to see its passing. I always try and buy local as possible, eat at local resturants, etc. I buy most of my tobacco at the B&M to help support them. A new local mens store opened in the mall, that reminds me of Stacy Adams. To bad I can't afford any new suits/need any more.