Kingdom Note Tokyo

[fabri00]

I never visited this shop in Tokyo in spite of the fact that from long time I spend few days a year in Japan for business. Maybe because it is close to Shinjuku Station and this area is a bit far for the area where I'm used to stay.

Today I had a free sunday, and I decided to visit it. Not that easy to get there, but ok I was not familiar with the area and unfortunatly I finished the datas of my roamimng plan for today, so no Googlemaps available.

Really very nice shop: nice atmosphere, very silent, great assortment of pens and inks from Japan and from all over the world, plus his own line of Sailor inks re-labelled (unfortunately they have very few blue inks........).

I bought a couple of ink bottles and a nice Sailor Professional Gear in black and chrome, the mid size, second hand, perfect and with a great BH nib, for 78,- € (price of the pen only.......inks excluded). This after having tested several pens with different nibs, with plenty of time.

The day before I bought the same pen of same size in pale green and gold trim, as limited edition of 2017, and I payed something close to 170,- € at Maruzen.

They have new pens at discounted price comparing with dept stores, bargains of the period which means pens discounted 40/50%, and second hand pens at different very good prices, refurbished as new. The second hand market is very common in Japan, and in the past I bought cameras, Ipods and pc hardware rather new and guaranteed by shops for good prices.

Finally, they accept credit cards, which helps, and they offer tax free sales for each good over 5.000 Yen. Morita in Osaka do not take credit cards and do not have second hand pens, just to mention another great shop I'm used to visit.

I lost the heart in an Omas faceted in grey marbled cellululoid and silver trim second hand. I did not asked to see it even, to avoid the sweet tentation ! On saturday I went already to Itoya and Maruzen Nihonbashi, and my budget for this trip was already gone before visiting Kingdome Note. But ok, I have one of the same color with gold trim of the first serie, bought wen it went in to the market (probably end 80's/early 90's).

The shop is at the 6th floor of the building of the picture here below:

 

 

 

Is a pitty I lost some years without knowing that place, which will becume a must for my next visit to Tokyo.

Very much suggested as shop for everibody visiting Tokyo.

The only weak point is a limited knowledge of english, but this is the same also in other stores here in Japan, except Itoya, and it is even worst at Morita in Osaka.

[Mew]

Bought a used MB 149 from them a few months ago. Great place.

[farazqamar]

i found a pelikan m800 brown tortoise that i had a friend buy for me and ship out. excellent shop. i hope to visit it one day.

Edited January 14, 2018 by farazqamar

[mongrelnomad]

A lovely, small Shop and I always stop in whenever Im in Tokyo, though Ive never bought a pen from them, only ink. The specials sell out quickly, and Ive usually stocked up on the generally available models from Itoya (I tend to stay in Ginza).

[rudyhou]

I never visited this shop in Tokyo in spite of the fact that from long time I spend few days a year in Japan for business. Maybe because it is close to Shinjuku Station and this area is a bit far for the area where I'm used to stay.

Today I had a free sunday, and I decided to visit it. Not that easy to get there, but ok I was not familiar with the area and unfortunatly I finished the datas of my roamimng plan for today, so no Googlemaps available.

Really very nice shop: nice atmosphere, very silent, great assortment of pens and inks from Japan and from all over the world, plus his own line of Sailor inks re-labelled (unfortunately they have very few blue inks........).

I bought a couple of ink bottles and a nice Sailor Professional Gear in black and chrome, the mid size, second hand, perfect and with a great BH nib, for 78,- € (price of the pen only.......inks excluded). This after having tested several pens with different nibs, with plenty of time.

The day before I bought the same pen of same size in pale green and gold trim, as limited edition of 2017, and I payed something close to 170,- € at Maruzen.

They have new pens at discounted price comparing with dept stores, bargains of the period which means pens discounted 40/50%, and second hand pens at different very good prices, refurbished as new. The second hand market is very common in Japan, and in the past I bought cameras, Ipods and pc hardware rather new and guaranteed by shops for good prices.

Finally, they accept credit cards, which helps, and they offer tax free sales for each good over 5.000 Yen. Morita in Osaka do not take credit cards and do not have second hand pens, just to mention another great shop I'm used to visit.

I lost the heart in an Omas faceted in grey marbled cellululoid and silver trim second hand. I did not asked to see it even, to avoid the sweet tentation ! On saturday I went already to Itoya and Maruzen Nihonbashi, and my budget for this trip was already gone before visiting Kingdome Note. But ok, I have one of the same color with gold trim of the first serie, bought wen it went in to the market (probably end 80's/early 90's).

The shop is at the 6th floor of the building of the picture here below:

 

 

 

Is a pitty I lost some years without knowing that place, which will becume a must for my next visit to Tokyo.

Very much suggested as shop for everibody visiting Tokyo.

The only weak point is a limited knowledge of english, but this is the same also in other stores here in Japan, except Itoya, and it is even worst at Morita in Osaka.

 

you making me miss tokyo now. i visited this shop for the first time on my last trip to tokyo in 2016. on this trip i also visited itoya and maruzen, also for the first time. i rarely get to visit japan, would love to return and explore more pen shops there.

[Tinjapan]

Just one correction, their Kingdom Note inks are shop exclusive colors, not repackaged inks. At least the first several series are.

[Quadratus]

I am currently completing a business trip to Tokyo but managed to find time to visit Kingdom Note today. It is not easy to find, but Googlemaps is useful if you put in the address online and look out for the sign which fabri00 has helpfully posted at the start of this thread. What confused me was that it is, of course, on the 6th floor of the building, whereas I was looking for the shop at street level. My mistake for not reading the directions properly.

 

The shop is a sheer, unadulterated delight! The service is excellent even though their knowledge of foreign languages is very limited- but we managed with basic English.

 

The stock is very impressive- lots of Pelikans and Montblancs, quite a few Deltas (now getting rare) and a good line in second hand pens. I was slightly disappointed by their comparatively low stock of Japanese pens. But then those are available in profusion in Itoya or Maruzen.

 

What I was REALLY impressed by was their inks, especially the inks specially produced for them by Sailor based on nature- the Crustaceans range, the Birds, the Insects etc. These you are allowed to try without fuss with pen and paper (I tried a large number) and the lady who served me was never irritated or reluctant to open another test bottle for trying out. I bought four of them- Stag Beetle, Tiger Prawn, Octopus and a dark purple whose name I will have to establish when I get back home. There were dozens more but my budget and luggage have their limitations!

 

One drawback - and here I find no acceptable reason- is that Kingdom Note does not sell online or export its products (although Vanness in the US may be an exception). If only they accepted online sales enquiries, then we could all have access to these wonderful inks.

 

This is one of the best pen and ink shops I have ever visited.

 

I am Swiss but live in London, where I regret to say no really decent pen shops remain due to the rise in commercial tax rates- Penfriend, the last remaining decent shop in London, shut its two branches last year and now only sells online or by appointment, a sad reflection of the state of UK business conditions. By comparison, Tokyo has a wealth of fine pen shops - as does Rome or Paris, but nothing really compares to the Japanese market. Perhaps it is because writing in pen and ink is still very much part of the culture, and there is a long and continuing tradition of appreciating calligraphy.

[gerigo]

Ahhh... Kingdom Note. One of my favorite stores in Tokyo. I LOVE them because you can monitor their stock very accurately online so that when you land, you know what they will have what you want and if you have very little time, either decide whether it's worth your time to visit or to skip for other stores.

 

What many don't realize is that, yes although they do sell used pens, they also sell current pens at a pretty decent discount, very similar in price to many online retailers. I managed to pick up a Sailor KOP for $360 or something like that because on top of the 20% discount off regular retail, they were running a weekend special which they do a lot of times. This is something you can't get at Itoya or Maruzen. However, their stock shifts and changes quickly and they don't carry everything unlike Itoya or Maruzen.

Edited March 2, 2018 by gerigo

[25_15_3]

I had the chance to visit Kingdom note today.

 

Much like everyone else, I would highly recommend checking the place out.

 

I tested a few Montblancs, a Sailor and a Platinum. I ended up leaving with a Sailor 75th anniversary pen and a Platinum 3776 ribbed.

 

The one thing about the shop is that it was heated really warm inside: a large contrast to the cold outside. I would say bring a bottle of water if you plan on looking at their stock for a extended time.

Edited March 3, 2018 by 25_15_3