The other day, I read that Brookstone is going through a bankgruptcy and is closing all its mall stores. But it’s keeping its airport terminal shops open.
The Brookstones in Boston (other than the one at Logan) have been gone for a while. Not that I spent a lot of time or money there, but I sort of miss them. Or I miss stopping in and wandering around, which my husband and I would often do on our walks. Brookstone was pretty much the only store he didn’t mind poking around in, and we bought a few things over the years: our Tempur-Pedic mattress and pillows, an occasional odd-ball gift, and – most famously – a totally hideous massage chair that Jim loved.
The massage chair is long gone. Its demise pre-dated that of Jim by a couple of years. He had pretty much fallen out of love with it. I think one of the rollers may have broken and it wasn’t worth getting repaired. As I recall, some guy doing repairs in the building took it off our hands. I was delighted to see it go. A total eyesore taking up way too much space in the living room.
But I maintained the word association of Brookstone and massage. So recently, when I was looking for a foot massager, the Brookstone Shiatsu Foot Massager looked pretty good. Unfortunately, after I used it a couple of times, it just stopped dead in its tracks. So I sent it back and ordered another brand entirely, which seems to be holding up pretty well.
I suspect that Shiatsu Massager will be the last Brookstone item I ever buy.
Unless I’ve got time to kill in some airport and decide I want another Temur-Pedic mattress. (We did like the Tempur-Pedic for a while, and it had replaced a truly dreadful, sciatica-inducing local non-brand. But in the winter, the mattress turned to a block of cement and took a while to warm up and become soft enough to roll over in without worrying about breaking your hip. Not a good look/feel in a chilly bedroom.)
I must say I always wonder about airport shops.
There are so many of them, they must be successful. But I don’t get it. I can see patronizing bookstores and the shops that sell candy/magazines/tee-shirts/souvenirs/water stores. I “shop” at them all the time, picking up water, Mentos, and M&M’s. Maybe a copy of Vanity Fair. Bookstores in airports I’m very happy with. Back in the day, the only books available were potboiler paperbacks. These days, you can generally find a book or two that you actually want to read.
And I can see the “oops I forgot to” shops selling chargers, headphones, adapters and other don’t leave home without it items.
But other than these shops – and the stands selling pre-packaged sandwiches to take on your flight – I just don’t understand shopping in the airport.
You’re taking a flight to Seattle and you suddenly get a jones for a pair of Johnson & Murphy wingtips? And don’t you need to buy your luggage before you get to the airport? I guess your bag can get man-handled or eaten by the conveyor belt. The wheels could come off. So I suppose you could decide to replace your luggage on the spot. Still, does this happen often enough to make it worthwhile to stay open?
As for Brookstone, sure they sell some of those “oops I forgot” and/or impulse items. But a bicycle? A keyboard? A laptop stand? A lamp?
I suppose you order it delivered. Still, it seems like an odd way to shop.
Maybe these airport shops are for those who order from the airlines catalogues. They just associate flight with shopping. Or for those folks who used to order from Sky Mall. Maybe these airport shops are just loss-leaders. They’re for browsers who will kick a few tires on a bike, test-drive a massage chair, and then go and order online.
Just a guess here: sooner or later, those Brookstone airport outlets will go the way of the company’s mall stores. And Brookstone will be one of those things that old geezer sit around reminiscing about. What was the name of that store that sold all the expensive useless stuff? No, not Sharper Image. The other one.
No comments:
Post a Comment