NSW-based stationery design studio, Bespoke Letterpress, debuted at the National Stationery Show (NSS) in New York recently with a range of new products.
Alischa Herrmann founded Bespoke in Brisbane in 2006 with a desire to create away from a computer screen. She decided to revive the practice of letterpress in Australia, and has grown the company into a successful business that relocated to NSW’s Bowral in early 2013.
Hermann says the company decided to exhibit at the NSS after growing its wholesale base in Australia. “We have recently started to grow our international stockists [and] we identified the NSS as a prime opportunity to share our lovely products with a much larger and diverse audience,” she says.
The company found great success at the show, being named a finalist in the International Greeting Card Awards Competition and the NSS Awards, and Hermann says she would recommend other Australian businesses exhibit abroad.
“The experience was beyond anything we could have anticipated. To not only exhibit and meet a huge array of fellow stationery lovers that loved us right back, but also have a selection of our products selected as finalists… exceeded any expectations we had.”
Bespoke exhibited a range of existing designs, along with a new range of letterpress foil greeting cards, gift tags and wrapping papers designed by the company’s in-house team. “We are not just printers—we are highly awarded graphic designers as well,” says Hermann.
“This powerful combination sees us combining our love of beautifully crafted typography and subtle illustrations with exquisite print craftsmanship for the most exceptional stationery possible.”
This approach means the Bespoke team is able to create unique stationery for its clients, but it can be challenging to ensure that the designs remain exclusive. “They do say imitation is the highest form of flattery, but that said, we work very hard to create unique pieces for our clients and of course we want to protect these.”
Bespoke is currently stocked in stationery, design and homewares stores throughout the country, and Hermann says the brand will be busy in the coming months. “We are about to start a very busy market season as well as launch our 2015 Christmas range… [but] knowing people want what we create never gets tired.”
