Signed Wind in the Willows SE - 200 copies

FS are currently selling 200 signed copies of Wind in the Willows by Charles van Sandwyk.

Edited to add: It is £150

https://www.foliosociety.com/uk/the-wind-in-the-willows-signed-edition.html

Was it Alice they did this for a couple months ago?

>2 What_What: Yes. They must have had the bookplates all signed together for both editions.

They already do this to an extent, with new editions. Now they’re just doing it retroactively. Not for me though.

*Just glanced over at the also-signed LE, bought new for £345 or thereabouts back in the day*. Easy pass.
This new phase of “signed bookplate now available with no previous announcement; don’t miss your chance for a pasted-in sheet of paper for roughly an additional £100 a pop over the standard edition!” seems to be spinning gold for the FS, but it’s happened often enough now to look like a deliberate marketing ploy based on FOMO. It seems rather vulgar to me in its conception and execution.

Does anyone else find this quite distasteful? Charging nearly 3 times as much for a bookplate signature of the illustrator gives me the feeling that they will do anything to make as much money as possible, even if it is ripping off their loyal base.

>6 Joshbooks1: It looks like we posted the same thing nearly simultaneously. :)

>5 cwl:

I'm with you--I also have the signed LE. I would, though, be interested in a signed edition of YRTTD on a scratch-and-sniff bookplate.

>6 Joshbooks1: Yes, I wholeheartedly agree with you

74 left so they are selling well. So Alice in Wonderland sold so well at £100 that they decided that they should raise the mark to £150 for Wind in the Willows. I wonder how much the next signed bookplate edition will be.

Folio clearly has a license to print £100 notes that, like any good banknote, are signed by its coterie of chief cashier's. Let us remember that a banknote is nothing other than an IOU from the issuing central bank to the bearer. I just don't understand why folio insists on calling books with glued-in IOU "signed books".

>5 cwl: and >6 Joshbooks1: It is definitely distasteful. The trend toward this sort of vulgar practice has been quite pronounced since the passing of Lord Gavron and the acquisition of FS by its employees. Never say that the workers are above crass marketing and gimmicks.

>11 ubiquitousuk: Banknotes were once upon a time an IOU from central banks, redeemable in gold or silver. What does a central bank owe you for their banknotes now? Other/more banknotes? IOUs exchanged for other IOUs?

All gone.

It's now gone

>5 cwl: totally agree, a lot of close to dodgy practises from Folio these days. Like listing 101 Dalmatians as selling out with only x number of copies left, revealing you could sign up to be notified when they get more stock only when it hit 0.

>10 assemblyman: Wow, quite the increase in price.

I don’t like it, and I voted with my wallet. Nobody’s forced to buy it, and nobody is being ripped off. Once they keep selling them out in a day, they’ll keep making them. Obviously they made 200 people happy, just none of those people are here posting about it.

>16 What_What: I agree, there are obviously people who want the signed volumes and they still provide reasonably priced nonsigned volumes, so while I would never buy one of the signed ones, they obviously make some people happy at no detriment to others.

>17 RRCBS: Ditto. I don’t understand the fuss, no one is forcing anyone to buy the bookplated editions, regular unsigned editions are still available for a lower price. A cheap and easy way for the FS to make money with very little effort.

I have no interest in paying a premium for signatures but if there is demand for FS signed copies at this price then why not supply it?

I find it rather crass, but if there are customers who are happy, indeed want, to buy a signature for £100 or so, then I don't see a problem. More fool them IMO, but then my OH thinks I'm a fool for buying any Folios at all (although she does like my Hassall Austens!). I certainly don't feel anybody is being ripped off - it's a trivial, if rather expensive, optional extra.
What I do wish they'd do is produce SEs for some of their more classic LEs, Like Bovary, Shandy et al., but that's a slightly different issue!

I mentioned it before, but the one problem I see is international shipping of about 30 Pounds. This tactic means that if you want a signed copy like this one, you have to buy right away instead of being able to combine shipping. So while I don't mind the signed at higher prices tactic as such, spreading these editions out like this is a real disadvantage for an international buyer.

One might also mention that other companies don't raise prices that considerably just for a signature. Waterstones, the Broken Binding and the like just make their offers more attractive this way without charging extra at all. That doesn't mean that this should be the only option, but one can see that the FS method isn't necessarily the norm.

>21 SF-72:

The marketing strategy is presumably that, for that exact reason, many will think "well, I might as well shove a couple of things from my wish list into my basket as well, in order to make the shipping charges worthwhile".

>18 kdweber: Personally, it's as simple as trust. If Folio is willing to add cheap plated signatures and sell them as an upgraded product at an exorbitant price increase, where do you draw the line? How can I have faith that their next premium product isn't a money grab at my expense? How much better would it have been if they said they had 200 signed copies of Wind in the Willows and the buyer will randomly get one with each regular purchase of the book. They would sell more of the SE and it would also instill good faith for a company going out of their way to support their loyal base. Instead it's the opposite. Maybe I'm the only one who feels this way, but, I no longer trust Folio and their product because of these type of business practices.

>7 cwl: haha great minds! what are the odds.

>23 Joshbooks1: I understand your viewpoint. Remember, we were once members of the society, and then we were dismembered to become mere customers.

>22 PeterFitzGerald:

It doesn't work with me, but I see what you mean.

>23 Joshbooks1: They don’t sell faith or trust. They sell books. They describe the books and you decide if you want to buy them, one by one, as they become available. Once they describe their books accurately, pack them well, and deal with customer service issues, it feels like you might be over complicating this.

>26 What_What: some people buy based on brand reputation, some people buy after carefully evaluating all product attributes. Neither approach is necessarily better, but assuming all customers should neglect brand flies in the face of empirical reality. Do a search on "brand dilution" for more reading than you could do in a lifetime.

>27 abysswalker: I don’t disagree with what you’re saying at all. I’m referencing this:
“How can I have faith that their next premium product isn't a money grab at my expense?”

So Folio decided to make 200 people happy (not the OP clearly) and make some quick cash, and now the whole thing falls apart completely? Nobody’s forcing anyone to buy anything.

Anyways, it’s established Josh is quite unhappy with the Folio Society as it is today, but I find the constant foot stomping because “how can other people like the things I don’t like” tiresome. Don’t think we’ll change each other’s opinions, so I’ll stop here.

>23 Joshbooks1: I have often heard comments that the majority of the LE’s over recent years (which I presume would be classed as premium products) are no more than pimped-up SE’s (that also have ‘plated signatures’, though less ‘cheap’ & more acceptable as these signed plates are (gasp) letterpress printed) along with a ‘frameable print’ & a box for, what often seems to me, a similarly exorbitant price increase (will they take £70 off the price if i tell them i don’t want the frameable print ?!)

Is the recent Shadow of the Wind LE worth £215 more than the new SE version that appeared only a couple of months later? Are the recent Shirley Jackson LE’s worth £200 more than the SE’s for a pasted in signature ,a print , outer box & a few production upgrades? That’s surely for the buyer to decide.

They sold 200 copies of Wind in the Willows in a few hours & put £30,000 in the coffers so it was obviously working for the 200 people who were willing to pay through the nose for a signed plate. I can understand why some may consider it a cash-grab but it appealed to 200 customers happy to pay £150 for the pleasure.

I’m not really sure why randomly allocating a signed copy to some buyers would make you trust the company more, ‘instill faith’ or show their support for ‘their loyal base’ ? Did FS’s recent promotion where they randomly sent customers a free book with every order similarly instill in you faith & trust & show FS’s desire to reward their loyal base ?

>28 What_What: Pot meet kettle. Haha, come on, are you serious?

>29 antinous_in_london: I'm fine that people are willing to pay $225 plus taxes and shipping just like I'm fine that people are willing to spend $400 on Trump shoes which I believe sold out faster than this promotion. To each their own, it's just not for me. If it was Brooks, a shoe company I really like, who made those gold high tops with an American flag on top, I would be extremely disappointed and lose both faith and respect for that company (politics aside.) I'm sorry, that's just how I feel.

Last paragraph you're right and it wasn't an idea I put much thought into. I figured it would have just been better than this now common practice of signed bookplate and charge double or triple.

I probably own more Folio SE and LE books than 90-95% of people on this forum. These recent marketing tactics where Folio exploits its customer base really irks me for I no longer see that company I once respected. I also think it's okay for people to have different opinions on this subject. It's okay to criticize as much as it is praise Folio; lets not turn into Facebook where mobs of people so regularly suppress opinion.

>23 Joshbooks1:
How can I have faith that their next premium product isn't a money grab at my expense?
It's all a 'money grab' - that's what their business is about, making money. And it's only 'at your expense' if you decide to buy something. As for that expense, we all know what we're buying (or not as the case may be!). They produce a book at a certain price. We know what it is, and we know what the price is. We also know that it might appear in a sale later on - as in all retail. Then they produce some book plates, at a certain price. Doesn't make any difference to the books we have or have not already bought, but if we want to pay a bit more for a piece of paper with a signature on, we can. Some books appear in limited numbers with more features, and are more expensive. Again, we know exactly what we're getting, and can decide whether it's worth the price or not.

It's all above board and pretty transparent. I'm no fan of the way FS has gone, but I just don't see what there is here not to trust. But....
I no longer see that company I once respected.
there I agree with you, although I recognise things needed to change for FS to survive.

>28 What_What: in this case, I think we're more on the same page than not. I don't have any issues with selling signatures like this, though they hold no appeal for me personally.

Overall, I think Folio has been doing reasonably well in terms of how much I trust them by default to create bibliophilic value for money. Better in some areas than others. The recent collection shows origin of printing on the website, which is a nice improvement in transparency, and contra many complaints I think they have a nice mix of contemporary and classic works, though maybe not the most adventurous choices.

My one major criticism that does dent my general attitude toward the brand is a tendency to degrade materials (full paper rather cloth for SEs, etc.). Both the Roadside Picnic and one of the McCarthy releases would have been purchases for me had the materials been slightly nicer, and now I feel like I need to carefully research that aspect of production before purchasing to avoid potential disappointment.

>30 Joshbooks1: I can understand why it feels irksome though calling it ‘exploitation’ may be going too far. It doesn't appeal to me as a strategy , but then tipped-in signatures don’t hold much appeal for me, but if they do for others then good luck to them & i hope they enjoy their purchases - I'm not sure they would considered themselves as having been exploited.

FS seem to be experimenting with different approaches & trying to ‘move with the times’ which is understandable. For a company that was in financial trouble only a few years ago i’m sure it’s hard to pass up an easy £30,000 by sticking a few signed bookplates into some existing editions - the lure of fast, easy money is very tempting & the speed with which these ‘signed’ editions sold seems to suggest there is an appetite for this approach from at least several hundred of their customers (whether casual purchasers or those from ‘their loyal base’) so I’m sure it is not the last we will see.

To me, the strangest thing about this whole episode is that Hand and Eye's limited edition of Wind in the Willows remains available a couple of years after it was released, while the FS version sold out so fast! Limited to only 150 copies, printed letterpress, packed full of joyful and humorous illustrations and available for not much more than the FS signed bookplate edition. Oh yes, and signed by the artist, Judy White (and not via a stuck-in bookplate). I own both this and the FS version and, nice though the FS edition is, the Hand and Eye edition wins for me. One of my favourite books from the last few years. Is it just that people aren't aware of it?

>34 Levin40:

Completely agree. The Hand and Eye edition is in my list of top 10 favourite books that I own. I'm amazed it hasn't sold out.

>36 Pax_Romana: the "standard state" Hand & Eye edition is an artisan hand-crafted fine press volume, superior in most respects (in terms of crafting) to many/most Folio LEs.

Art style is a matter of taste of course, but color doesn't alone mean the production quality is better. Personally, I prefer the whimsical style of Judy White's illustrations, and the black and white line art can be reproduced using a relief method (letterpress), meaning the whole book (text and art) can be printed using the same method, an ideal some collectors appreciate. The same is not true if the art must be reproduced using a different method.

Additionally, I actually prefer the "standard" here to the Deluxe Hand & Eye, despite the finer materials and hand-coloring of the deluxe, because I think the cloth and yellow is more in keeping with the feel of the story (black leather feels too heavy to me).

>34 Levin40: Speaking personally, the reason I didn't get it was timing. If I recall, this came out around the same time as the Mad Parrot Press and Editions Caurette versions of the book (or at least I became aware of them all together around the same time). I loved the look of the Mad Parrot Press version, but couldn't justify it, so I went in the other direction for the Editions Caurette version (which does have beautiful artwork, though in a more traditional mode). The Hand and Eye version fell right between those two and didn't sway me at the time, though I am reconsidering it now. It certainly is a comparative bargain when one sees all that has gone into it. The shipping cost however is as atrocious as ever...