Hoping to fill a gap in the market for men’s gifts, Pigeonhole has added US label, Henley Brands, to its portfolio.
Johann Kim, Pigeonhole founder, discovered the brand at the NY Now trade fair in January and was so excited by the products he brought their trade show stand back with him on the plane charges for Life Instyle Sydney.
“It was love at first sight,” he says. “Being a fella, I was automatically drawn to their products, the heritage nature of their branding, the clean and yet rustic brand presentation and packaging, the simplicity of their product range and functional design.”
Henley Brands products include barware, gadgets and tools. The designers are well-experienced having previously worked as in-house product developers for major brands and department stores.
“The product is well priced, excellently manufactured with quality craftsmanship, has fantastic branding and most importantly, guys love it. It’s a brand for guys with gear that guys actually want. When we showed it in Sydney in February we had a steady stream of guys who would hover around the stand asking if we could sell them any of the products – testament to a great men’s range.
“The response to Henley has probably been the best reaction we’ve seen to any new brand that we’ve released to date. The product is yet to hit stores, but we’re expecting it to sell out fast and have already outsold our first shipment. Stores are going on a waiting list for the next delivery which we hope we can get soon.”
In addition to Henley Brands Pigeonhole has also signed on five other labels recently including Native Youth and iHeart-This. Kim says this is part of a renewed focus on the wholesale side of Pigeonhole after spending the last two years growing the retail side.
“This year I decided to put more attention into making sure that our wholesale business carries the best in unique and accessible gifts and homewares from around the world. So far this year I’ve been in 15 cities. I rarely spend more than one week in one place. I believe this gives us an edge in finding better products and also staying one step ahead.”
Pigeonhole has also moved its wholesale office and warehouse to Sydney to help expand the business both nationally and overseas.
