The Tamesis
Starr of Dream Baby Press also has curatorial chops. “I make very little merch. I don’t really want to make something just for the sake of making it, or do anything that’s a cash grab, and that’s the nature of most merch,” he said. “I really just want to make something limited edition that you can get at our events.”
Quality is as important as scarcity; Burley wants her book merchandise to be cherished rather than thrown away. Cut-and-sewn T-shirts are made from organic cotton and produced in Portugal, while an upcoming baby T-shirt is inspired by an old Japanese band T-shirt from Burley’s own collection. “It was an extra luxurious detail that was well thought out,” she said.
Origin story
Book merchandise isn’t always so intentional. The story of contemporary book merchandise begins with Daunt Books, an Edwardian bookstore with three branches in London. In 2006, Daunt began selling an inexpensive canvas tote bag emblazoned with the store’s illustrations. It unexpectedly became an iconic staple among literati, and in the process was sold around the world. “As much as I love-hate them, I have to give props to that humble tote bag in the bookstore—without which none of this would happen,” Tsjeng said.
Daunt’s low-priced best-selling handbags inspired rare book boutique Idea. Co-founder David Owen originally wanted to print “Birkin” on the handbag, but was inspired by Winona Ryder and ultimately chose “Winona”. He made the first batch of 25 shirts for the opening of New York’s Dover Street Market, but has sold 15,000 to date. “If you go to Paris for Fashion Week [in 2016] “When you go on Eurostar and it says ‘Winona’ between bags, shirts and hats, you’ll probably see about eight,” Owen said.
The merchandise has since grown into a series of spelling pieces that reflect Idea’s unique use of language. Its signature product is a playful statement—like “fat tuna,” “expensive taste,” or “I don’t work here”—for those who want to be outrageous. “The person who wears the hat has to be a certain type of person, and only a certain percentage of people are willing to talk to people. You could try wearing a ‘new dad’ hat and not engage in a conversation every five minutes,” Irving joked. Idea’s logo can only be found on the back, has an IYKYK vibe, and is identifiable only by the signature serif font. “It’s the same underlying passion that you see something or think about something and want to share it.”
