DIY market keeps Scribe optimistic about bottom line
A speciality retail store is getting a boost in sales from the rising do-it-yourself (DIY) market. It has also rebranded this year to capture the younger crowd.
Amid intense competition with some stores offering cheaper items and doing business on online platforms, Sharon Mae Santos, operations manager at Scribe, said the growing popularity of DIY in the Philippines plus the innovations they’ve put in place have cemented the company’s footing in the country.
Scribe has seven branches located in Manila and Cebu. Two of these branches are in SM City Cebu and Ayala Center Cebu.
As it tries to win more customers, Santos announced they have rebranded their concept stores from being known as Scribe Writing Essentials to simply Scribe.
“The rebranding revitalizes the brand’s loyal clientele and reaches out to a wider market by introducing them to a curated selection of fine writing and reading products as well as special gift items,” the company said in a statement.
Established in 2002, Scribe now offers over 80 brands with 33 exclusive brands, including the popular Traveler’s Company, Midori, and Hobonichi.
It also carries fountain pen brands Kaweco, Plantinum Japan, J. Herbin, Noodler’s, and Sailor Japan.
In the midst of a booming e-commerce economy, Santos said the need to put up brickand-mortar stores still applies to them, especially since their potential and regular consumers would still prefer to touch and try the products.
The store, though, also maintains an online presence.
One innovation they have put in place is to add “experience”.
Santos said gone are the days when retailers only sold the items in-store, because in today’s age, product workshops for consumers are a perfect marketing tool to entice more people to buy and get involved.
She cited the sudden surge in calligraphy workshops.
“It’s a strategy. For one, you want to keep your market engaged and second, it is now difficult to sell something that consumers don’t know how to use,” she said.