In a digital world, Wynwood stationery store embraces a paper paradise

In the digital age, opening a letterpress could seem like a risky business venture. But not for Bridget Dadd, owner of Wynwood Letterpress, a small shop in the Wynwood Block that caters to the lost art of calligraphy and all things stationery.

As a little girl, Dadd collected the scraps from her father’s hole puncher and used her allowance money to purchase confetti by the scoop.

“It’s what I’ve wanted to do my whole life,” Dadd said. “I collected erasers as a kid. I hoarded notebooks and pencils. I collected cards. It’s just been something I’ve always been into.”

She graduated from the University of Miami with a major in public relations and creative writing and got her professional start in the hospitality industry. Despite the hotel business being profitable, it wasn’t her passion.

“I always kept a few little things [from trips] knowing that I’m going to have a store at some point in my life,” Dadd said. “So it’s really cool to see it happening.”

The letterpress opened last March, and the layout of the store was inspired by her trips to the Mitte District in Berlin with her husband. Some of the items for sale are from a personal collection she gathered beginning from her time in London during college to staplers she brought back from Italy.

One of the most coveted items in the store is a small collection of literature books fit into cigarette boxes. The manufacturer sells in the United States only to Dadd and another shop in California. For her it’s important to keep a diverse mix of inventory such as glue from Japan and notebooks from Paris.

“One of the hardest parts or challenges I didn’t realize at the beginning was keeping the integrity of what’s in here and not having other people want to come in and take those same things and try to do the same thing. I take really close care of what’s in here, and I take a long time finding it and sourcing it and picking it out, and it’s really special to hear. I don’t want people to come in and take pictures and buy it online.”

Dadd also likes to work with her customers’ ideas and doesn’t charge for custom artwork. She also works with South Florida illustrators.

“I want people who come in and spend $5 to feel the same way as someone who spends $500,” she said.” I want to keep the store really special. We like to celebrate every day and I hope when people come in they find something that speaks to them.”

This story was originally published January 20, 2016 at 2:18 PM with the headline "In a digital world, Wynwood stationery store embraces a paper paradise."