Maybe it’s a yearning for nostalgia or to simply be “unplugged” but typewriters seem to be enjoying a Renaissance, especially among Gen-Z.
Michael Marr of “Marr Office Equipment” in Pawtucket says the throwback is making a comeback. Yet, at his shop, started by his family almost three-quarters of a century ago, vintage typewriters have never been a thing of the past. He says, “When the vacuum came along, they said you’d never need a broom in your house. And if you go in most households, you’ll find a broom. Right? Same with typewriters.”
Marr is the third generation to run the business started by his grandfather, “He was the pioneer. He was involved in it at a young age, and he passed it along to my father,” says Marr.
His father, Ray, although retired, still puts in time at the shop, typing out invoices on an old electric.
Michael Marr says the company makes almost as much revenue servicing and selling typewriters as it does on repairing copiers and printers. Tinkering with typewriters, Mike says, is his passion.“I like figuring things out. I love troubleshooting. One night I was here, I was stuck on a machine, it was two-thirty in the morning. I kept at it, just obsessed with fixing it.”
In addition to refurbishing customer’s antiques, there’s a variety for sale. The manuals range in price from $85 to $100. Electrics can go as high as $1,000. The supply comes from donations or flea market finds.
Marr says people under age 30, Gen-Z, are their most frequent customers. “They’re like totally like, wow, I got to have one of these. I got to try it. I think that the mystique of it all, of how it was put together, fascinates people.”
Growing up in an era dominated by digital, high-speed technology, many go retro because of what typewriters don’t have: no charger, no interruption from the internet and no temptation to scroll.
Marr says it forces the writer to slow down. “The feel, the touch, it puts you in a mind frame of total focus. That’s the biggest thing we get from writers. They get in a zone with typing. Everything’s blocked out. There are no electronic devices to disturb them. It transcends anything out there. It’s a writer’s best friend,” says Marr.
Mark Twain was the first writer in the late 1800s to take a stab at a typewriter. Authors from Ernest Hemingway to Dr. Suess, Theodore Geisel, followed suit. Today, actor Tom Hanks collects typewriters and superstar Taylor Swift has been known to use them. Marr says the celebrity cachet may be part of the reason people are bringing family heirlooms in for him to resurrect.
“We got a big surge around Christmas time. It’s funny, I’ll be working right up till Christmas Eve,” says Marr. “They’ll come in like eight, nine o’clock, the customers, to pick up the machine for their children or whatnot. I won’t feel complete until I get that last one done.”
Marr says watching a customer’s amazement at the almost mint condition of a repaired, vintage typewriter is when carrying on his family’s tradition really clicks. “The biggest thing is the joy you get, you seeing people’s expressions and that alone makes it all worth the while.”
