Vol. 6 Retailer Spotlight – Yoseka Stationery
Can you give us a brief bio of you and your store?
I’m Daisy and together with my husband Neil, we own and run Yoseka Stationery in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. We recently moved locations from Sunnyside, Queens, where we first opened in 2018.
What’s the story of Yoseka? What led up to you opening up a storefront?
I’ve always loved stationery. Neil, who grew up in a stationery store run by his parents in Taiwan, and I were missing the experience of stationery shopping in Asia. In those shops, you can explore lots of fun items and tools for doing office, school, and creative work all in one place. There are so many different stationery designs and styles to choose from since it’s a larger part of everyone’s everyday life there. Stationery trends are always changing and often reflect the different colors and patterns that are popular in fashion and current events. We wanted to introduce more people to all the different choices they can have when it comes to choosing even just a pen or pencil.
How did you fall in love with stationery?
For as long as I can remember, growing up, I would take yearly trips to Taiwan with my mom every summer and would always come home with luggage full of stationery. I treasured and would use them very gently all school year long until the next year’s trip. I guess there’s no specific moment for when I fell in love with stationery, but it’s more that I’ve always thought of stationery as an extension of my everyday life.
How did you first hear about Blackwing?
When we started Yoseka Stationery, one of the first big steps we took towards opening as a physical store was doing pop-ups at markets. We rented a space at Brooklyn Flea’s indoor market in 2017 and it was so fun talking to people since anyone who stopped by at our table tended to be someone who had an interest in stationery as well. It was there that someone mentioned Blackwing to us. We looked into the history of the brand and became really interested so we reached out. Blackwing was the first major brand that we directly opened an account with and took a chance on us as a (very) small retail store at that time and we were really excited and grateful for the opportunity.
Do you have a favorite Blackwing Volumes pencil?
I’ve loved the Volume 10s since they first came out. Ever since I was a kid I always had a fascination with journalism and Nellie Bly’s pioneering work in investigative journalism as well as her adventures around the world are astonishing to me. Plus, I love the matte grey newspaper print finish.
What’s your favorite unique thing in your shop?
When Neil and I were furnishing our first shop and then our new shop, which opened just a couple of weeks ago, we went on the hunt for antiques to fill the space with. Aside from the shelves, nearly every piece of furniture we have in the shop comes with a story of a journey that he and I took together to some far corner to uncover one of our current treasures. When I walk into our shop first thing every morning, I’m reminded of all of these little adventures we’ve taken and I love that.
Lastly, what are your favorite things about the neighborhood?
We’re still new to Greenpoint since we only just moved here, but one of the first things that struck us was how much there is going on all the time. It’s not something we’re used to since we live in Sunnyside, which is a pretty residential and quiet place. There are film shoots going on almost every day, the other week a really cool new mural was painted across the street from us and then it was painted over the next day! When we leave the store at night, we hear sounds from the drive-in movie theater right next to us. I had the best chocolate cupcake in my life at Ovenly. On the weekends, when the weather is nice, Neil, Soraya, and I take walks to the water right behind us. We get bubble tea from Vivi on Greenpoint, donuts from Peter Pan, and shop for antiques at Mother of Junk and plants at Tend and Greenery Unlimited.
Yoseka Stationery
63 West Street
Brooklyn, New York 11222
http://yosekastationery.com
@yoseka.stationery