Postmark opened the first of its new look stores on Monday (21 October), in London’s Kings Cross railway station with another brand new store opening next week at Liverpool Street station.
And, as the indie retail chain reaches a 15-store estate, plans are already in the pipeline for the London Bridge store to be revamped in early January 2025.
The new look transforms the greeting card and stationery store which Postmark took on as part of its successful takeover of five former Paperchase sites within Network Rail sites as well as several other locations in March last year – until now, the Kings Cross store has traded as Postmark, but utilised the former Paperchase fixtures and fittings.
Mark Janson-Smith, managing director of Postmark who runs the business with wife Leona, told StationeryNews.net’s sister title, PGBuzz .net that he was “mightily relieved” and feels “very pleased” with the transformation.
He added: “I admit I was absolutely terrified as it represents a large investment, but it also represents the exciting next step in the company’s evolution and brings our Kings Cross store firmly into the Postmark family in its look and feel.”
With a contemporary wooden tree providing a central focus as soon as you enter the store, the light wood flooring, fixtures with a pale turquoise accent colour, illuminated card genre signage and repositioned till area, the redesign creates a warm welcome into the card and stationery emporium.
A wide selection of greetings flank the back wall while standalone fixtures are used to great effect along the curved shopfront and in the main body of the shop to showcase various stationery stories from a vast array of suppliers, including Leuchtturm1917, Vent For Change, The Art File, Museums & Galleries, Chronicle Books and Galison.
Although there is a small display of Christmas novelty gifts, the product portfolio stays true to Postmark’s remit of championing greeting cards and stationery.
In the last year alone, Postmark has sold 65,000 notebooks and 90,000 pens across its 15 stores, and was crowned both Best Greeting Card Small Multiple as well as Greeting Card Retailer of the Year in The Retas 2024 awards in July.
