I have always been a habitual user of paper diaries and notebooks for work and personal use — and as I found out I’m not alone…
During one of my biannual notebook shopping trips, I noticed there was a notable lack of stylish, good quality, yet affordable books. This sparked my initial interest, and lead me to ask, who buys notebooks and why?
Some might think, as was my initial impression, that in an age of millennials and smart technology, the humble notebook would have been left at the waste side. But, it transpires, very much to the contrary, notebook sales have been steadily increasing YOY, for example, Moleskin’s revenue almost tripled between 2010 – 2015 of which 90% were paper products such as diaries and notebooks. And if we follow the Japanese and Korean stationery market, it will continue to grow for the foreseeable.
So why have we reverted back to the paper and pen? Has our desire to overexpose on social media pushed us to crave privacy, and the reassuring tangibility of a notebook?
As quote by Kevin Braddock from Daily Telegraph; ‘Notebooks and stationery fetishes stand firmly on one side of a modern social divide, representing intimacy and privacy; on the other side is the compulsive self-exposure of social networking, commenting and blogging. The former being more reflective and considered than the digital diarrhea of status updates, comments and tweets, less coldly perfunctory than emails and text tapped out on an iphone, ipad or blackberry, the vogue of note making returns writing to an act of expression instead of communication’.
Having previously run a luxury leather brand, delving into the world of affordable stationary was an exciting prospect. I wanted to design something that had a luxury look without the price tag. The material used for the covers is almost identical to leather in look and feel, with incredible durability thereby giving it the appearance of a premium product.
As the business evolved, it became clear that what was missing wasn’t just a retail product. Every job I have ever done, whether it be in a large organization or startup, a notebook has been the first thing I’ve reached for. From then I realized there were two businesses within one, Rollo Corporate and Rollo London.
Under the Rollo Corporate brand, we offer our clients a fully bespoke service, giving them the ability to customize their notebooks completely, from an embossed logo, bespoke page layouts, to personalized charms affixed to the front of each book.
The Rollo London team have created two ranges, our standard ‘Every Day’ and our ‘Premium’, ensuring we are able to cater for every requirement, whether it be large volumes for internal use or bespoke premium notebooks for gifting or special events.
What lies at the core of the Rollo brand is our enduring passion for timeless design, quality, service and price.
For more information corporate products visit www.rollolondon.com/corporate or email info@rollolondon.com
