Today we’d like to introduce you to Carmelle Kendall.
Carmelle, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My co-founder, Robin Beck, and I grew up as neighbors, just south of Atlanta in Fayetteville, Georgia. I studied business at Howard University and then art direction at SCAD while Robin studied communications at The University of Michigan and then again at Columbia University. Our degrees and interests were setting the foundation for our business, but we didn’t know that at the time.
Fast forward to after grad school. We found ourselves neighbors again in Harlem, New York. Robin was interested in writing children’s books but wanted a faster output. She had an idea to create greeting cards because she thought they would each tell a little story.
I remember Robin throwing the idea out in my apartment while we were watching The Mindy Project. She said she wanted me to do graphic design for some of the greeting card ideas that she had and I was intrigued. Once I saw the references, I realized that she wanted illustrations, not graphic design. I didn’t consider myself an illustrator at the time, so I wanted to try and see if I could do the drawings before saying yes or no. I took the weekend and illustrated the images to go with her copy and I had so much fun!
I realized my love for illustrating after drawing the first cards. We met back up in my apartment, so I could show her the drawings and I said, “I want to do this with you!” Neighborly was created that night. That was three years ago in October 2016.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely hasn’t always been a smooth road, but we have had steady growth, which is great. I have learned so much as a result of starting Neighborly Paper. From growing my illustration skills to learning about accounting and business taxes, it seems like every day there’s a new problem to solve. One struggle for the both us is managing all of the backend tasks while still making time to do what we’re best at– illustrating and writing.
Neighborly Paper – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Neighborly Paper is a paper company specializing in witty, hand-drawn greeting cards. We are known for telling it like it is. We pride ourselves on being authentic, personal, and original.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
The proudest moment so far for Neighborly was getting featured on “The Today Show” earlier this year. Speaking to over one million viewers about our paper company made me feel an immense amount of pride for the company we have built over the past few years. The entire experience was unforgettable. I was smiling from ear to ear from the time I landed in New York City for the live taping to the time I landed back in Atlanta. We remain so thankful for that opportunity.
Pricing:
- Greeting Cards – $4.50
- Postcards – $2
- Zodiac box set – $34
Contact Info:
- Website: neighborlypaper.com
- Email: neighborlypaper@gmail.com
- Instagram: @neighborlypaper
- Facebook: @neighborlypaper
- Twitter: @neighborlypaper
Image Credit:
Photography Credit: Vijay Agrawal @caltheme
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