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Since 1982, this privately-owned stationery store has been providing the Valley with creative, classic and custom cards and invitations, andLiz Richmond has been there almost as long. With the help of artists and calligraphers and a huge selection of fun and lovely stationery to browse through, The Paperbag is a great resource for wedding and party planning, helping ensure your invitations make the perfect first impression for your event.
With digital communication dominating, would you say that snail mail still has an important place?
Snail mail is more important than ever. People are recognizing [it] more when they go to the mailbox and get their mail. I hear, quite often, that people are tired of emails! Snail mail makes an individual feel very special.
What are people who walk through your door looking for?
I have two different types of customers. One is looking for unique greeting cards, stationery and gift-wrap. The other is looking for custom invitations for any type of party. Weddings comprise 75 percent of our custom work. Customers are looking for help and expertise with invitations and etiquette. The Internet is too confusing for a lot of couples today—they want to “see it, feel it, touch it” in regards to invitations. They also want help in the wording and timing.
How do you help brides/grooms or event planners narrow down the best style for their invites?
We start with about ten questions to get to know their style for the wedding. Wedding invitations are the first thing a couple’s guests see that indicates the style of the wedding they’re having. In fact, any invitation to any party is the first thing guests see to tell them the style of party it will be.
What do you love about this business?
Working with customers to help make their event a great one. I also love making people laugh with the cards we carry!
What’s challenging about this work?
The most challenging thing about the customization aspect of the store is the time it takes to produce the items. We live in an “instant” world, and some things cannot be done instantly. The most challenging aspect of the card side of the business is finding great new products that will sell.
How much freedom do customers have with stationery design?
Quite a bit. We work with calligraphers and artists to draw what the customer is looking for. We’ve been able to expand the possibilities by working with them. Customers come in with an idea and we can send them to the calligrapher/artist and she will submit camera-ready art for the companies to print. We just finished working on an invitation for a wedding at Lehigh Valley Zoo, which has otters, penguins, kangaroos and prairie dogs on each of the different pieces. Adorable! We’ve also just finished an invitation that has a schoolhouse on the ceremony part recreated for print by the calligrapher from a photo provided by the customer. To quote my husband: “If you have a vision, we can help create it!”
How do you help with invitations beyond simply printing?
We sit with customers and help them with wording, timelines on when to mail invitations, when to get replies back, what style works for them, printing and mailing of envelopes—we tell people, “We don’t take replies or write thank you notes, buteverything else, we can do!” We have often helped customers with other aspects of their parties,as well.
What changes have you seen in trends over the past 30 years?
Oh, where to begin? Trends for wedding invitations and weddings have come so far in the past 31 years! When we started selling custom invitations, we had 12 books filled with white/ivoryinvitations with colored ink. Square invitations were new in 1988. One of the best trends out there is weddings/parties in your own individual style. No more “cookie-cutter” weddings! A few big trends right now include country chic/vintage with burlap, lace and Mason jars; glitter; traditional, classic ivory and white; and pocket invitations. A customer described it as a “Trapper Keeper.”
3900 Hamilton Blvd., Allentown | 610.820.9959 | thepaperbagonline.com
