Need a funny card to send to the special someone in your life? Look no further than
Colette Paperie, a new-to-Cincinnati online stationery business.
Keli Catalano, 30, started Colette Paperie back in 2008 when she was a designer at Target in Minnesota. At the time, stationery was something she liked to do on the side, but when Catalano moved back to Cincinnati in 2010, she decided to make it her full-time job.
“I’ve always loved paper,” says Catalano. “Even though I don’t have a need for them, I still buy cards.”
Catalano designs and illustrates the cards herself. She usually draws the designs by hand and then touches them up on the computer.
The majority of Catalano’s business is through online sales, but she does visit craft shows and sells her products wholesale to boutiques across the country. They’re available on
Colette Paperie’s website, or at
Boutique 280 in Madeira and
Wholly Craft in Columbus.
Colette Paperie offers cards for all occasions, plus journals, calendars, stationery sets, pencils and magnets. The products' messages say exactly what you want to say, but in unique ways.
The baby cards are some of Catalano’s craziest designs, and they tend to be the most popular among buyers. “Some of them are ridiculous, but they’re funny,” she says.
Catalano does take custom orders for wedding stationery, but she hasn’t concentrated on that side of her business yet. She also customizes messages on the insides of the cards for customers.
Catalano’s goal is to create a new reason to send paper mail instead of email. “I love seeing people send cards for no particular reason,” she says.
By Caitlin Koenig
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