YOU’VE GOT MAIL: Paperless Post, the American company known for its hybrid digital and paper stationery, is launching in the U.K.
“The U.K. was a natural choice because it’s the largest international market outside the U.S. for our digital products. There has been a lot of demonstrated demand for our online invitations, particularly in London, to the point that we’ve naturally grown to have about 500,000 users,” said James Hirschfeld, who founded the company in 2009 alongside his sister, Alexa Hirschfeld.
Entering the U.K. market is the first step in an international expansion plan. The company is simultaneously working on launches in Canada and Australia, with further extensions in the works later this year.
To mark the launch, the company is collaborating with Liberty on a 100-piece collection of invitations designed using prints from the British department store’s extensive archives.
“Liberty is quite famous and well-appreciated in the U.S. We see it as a quintessentially British heritage brand that represents decades and decades of British aesthetics from William Morris to the iconic floral prints,” said Hirschfeld.
“It was a great way of diving into a British heritage brand and capturing that English country aesthetic. A lot of invitations were designed with an English country wedding or summer party in mind, so the partnership sits very well for the type of entertaining that we are trying to support.”
The collection mainly features floral patterns; delicate designs in pastel colors are used for baby shower and christening invitations, while bolder prints are used to decorate invitations for weddings or summer entertaining.
Layering effects were also used to decorate the insides of envelopes; “We created mix-and-match patterns and paired prints together in a way that allowed them to really come alive,” said Hirschfeld.
Prices range from 1.30 pounds, or $1.84, for engraved or thermographed paper, 75 pence, or $1.06, for flat paper, while customers can order online invitations free of charge.
Hirschfeld said the company is expecting similar activity in the U.K. and the U.S., but they are looking into collaborating with more British brands as part of their expansion.
“One of the most exciting aspects presented by this opportunity is being able to not only focus on the users, but also on the wealth and creativity that the UK and London are famous for in terms of fashion and design,” added Hirschfeld. “We have already been having some very fruitful conversations with fashion brands that we would love to work with.”
The company has already been making its presence known in the country’s design scene. Last October, they teamed with London-based design studio Patternity, on a tightly edited collection of eight black-and-white stationary designs and an installation displayed at the London Design Festival.
Paperless Post has always been known for its creative partnerships which have included Kate Spade, Vera Wang, J. Crew and Derek Blasberg, as well as an ongoing collaboration with Oscar de la Renta.
“We wanted to have the most differentiated wedding offering and to us Oscar de la Renta was the partner with the most interesting perspective in the wedding category. We are continuously working with them to update the collection, drawing from ready-to-wear, their bridal show and fabric swatches the studio sends us,” said Hirschfeld.
The collection in partnership with Liberty launches today and will be available to purchase on paperlesspost.com.
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