Behind the Shop

I’m interrupting our stream (trickle?) of posts from Japan with an announcement about what’s going on in shop: the Traveler’s Notebook Stamp Caravan is here! The stamps have been making their way around the world and through Canada, stopping off at various retailers, who invite their local customers to stop by and use the stamps in their notebooks. We’re excited to be the final shop in Canada—although it’s been hard sitting still and waiting for them to finally arrive at our doorstep.

Of course (of course!) it goes without saying that we could not visit Japan without trying to see if we could visit The Superior Labor in Okayama. The Superior Labor studio, factory, shop and family home are located in Okayama prefecture, about an hour’s flight outside Tokyo.

Anyone who knows anything at all about Japanese culture knows how important fish is. It’s no surprise, given that Japan is an island nation, that fish feature prominently in much of their cuisine, and sushi is, of course, both popular everywhere and incredibly delicious.

While you will certainly find abundant washi tape made by several different companies in shops throughout Japan, since we were in Tokyo, we wanted to visit the original masking tape company, mt.

Life Stationery is another brand that we’ve carried since we opened our doors, and to this day, shipments from Japan are as exciting as ever. Their Noble Note line is iconic among true stationery nerds, and their paper is fantastic for fountain pens.

I grew up in a small town, and then went to school in another small town. I remember my first time taking the TTC, the subway system in Toronto, and being amazed at the urban-ness of the experience. I think the person I was with laughed at me and said the TTC system is really nothing amazing: it’s a big U and one line across the U.

After years of using and carrying Traveler’s Notebook in our shops, we finally made it out to Tokyo to visit the famed Nakameguro Traveler’s Factory.

The first leg of our Tokyo trip was making it to the ISOT Stationery Show—we stayed at a hotel quite close to where it was taking place, especially since we were arriving late at night in Tokyo, a completely new city for us.