It’s time to make that leap from the tabletop in your workspace to the display shelf of a stationery store. Here’s how to get going:

(above: cards on display at Rare Device of Park Slope, Brooklyn)

1) RESEARCH. Come up with a list of stores you’d like to have your products available in. By that, I mean the stores whose style and aesthetic are similar to your creations, which may not necessarily be the same stores that you like buying stationery items from.

Check to see if the stores have websites, and if they do, whether there are product submission guidelines. More and more stores have this nowadays. I’ve compiled a list of boutique stores which might be helpful.

Look for contact information — unless there’s a specific submissions e-mail address, most likely you’ll be writing to the store e-mail, which the owner usually checks. If possible, find out the name of the storeowner(s) — that way you can address them directly when you are writing, and there’s a lower chance that your e-mail might be overlooked in the flood of strange correspondences and spam that stores often recieve.

2) WRITE. Your e-mail to the store should “pitch” your product to the storeowners:

-  a clear description of your product (materials, colors, measurements/dimension)

- the retail price (the price your products will be sold at) — storeowners who are interested in carrying your stuff will probably make their suggestions on pricing based on their store experience, but it’s important to start out with a pretty good idea of how much your products should cost and stick to your prices as much as possible. Pricing can get a bit tricky, so here’s an article on how to price your work.

- the wholesale price of your product (this is usually 50% of your retail price and is what you will actually get paid if your product sells in the store)

- a short description of who would be interested in buying your product, and why

- the names of other stores, if any, that are carrying your products

- you might also want to include a brief bio telling them more about yourself and the story behind your stationery line

3) ATTACH. Your writing may spark the storeowners’ interest in your stuff, but it’s the photos you attach to your e-mail that will make them press the reply button and tell you they’re interested. Either attach 2 to 3 good photos of your products (as jpgs, of no more than 75KB each), or else send them a weblink to another site where your products photos are. You could put your photos on an image-hosting service like flickr, on your own website or blog, or on an online shop like etsy.

4) SEND. After you’ve proofread everything, attached your images, and made sure it’s addressed to the right person, press “send”!

5) REPLY. Stores that are interested in your work will reply to your initial email within a couple of weeks and probably request samples from you. Send one or two items that best represent your products. You’re almost there!

Good luck! 

[We’d love to hear your experiences in submitting your work to stores, so please share those with us in the comments section!]

August 3rd, 2006