If it’s too surprising or too avant-garde, they don’t get it. So we’re always looking for a balance of surprise and the familiar. We get a lot of questions about why we’re doing the things we’re doing, especially when they’re different from what we’ve done before. So, all of the relationships that you already have may not serve the purpose of getting into the public eye or distributing the way that you need to. And it often means new sales reps and new buyers. The biggest is going into new manufacturing areas, which means all new sourcing. Jen: Oh my god! So many! Our problem is that sometimes we have too many ideas. (Back, left to right) Craig Hetzer, Ivan Navarro, Andrew Gibbs, Jen Bilik (Front) PacoĪndrew: Are there any products that you haven’t tried your hands on yet? or what are some of the projects you’d want to tackle next? Because I think that it is narcissistic and hard to sell at some point. I hate businesses that are people’s names. You say “Knock Knock” and the immediate reply is “Who’s there?” It’s an allusion to humor and childhood, and, it is sort of surreal, that it doesn’t connect at all to what we do. I also liked the call-and-response sense to it. The words are sort of visual palindromes because they have the Os in the middle and the Ks on either side. The letterforms are interesting-Ks are interesting letterforms. I also knew it would make a good logo, because it was two words repeated. One day when I was thinking of a name, the door was open and I kept thinking, “What will I call it? What will I call it?” and then my eyes landed right at the orange door that said “Knock Knock.”Īndrew: It was staring at you the whole time! I went back to the business idea, but was stuck with the question of what I was going to call it. I realized that I was more interested in this business idea and kept going back to it, which made me think that maybe I should hold off on the book. So, I was working on this book but I also had an idea of creating a business. So, I had glued these plastic letters on the door to say “Knock Knock” and on the inside it said, “Who’s there?” and I had painted the door orange and the inside white. I decided that I wanted to write this book, but I was procrastinating. I was a book editor before I started Knock Knock. It was a great little Venice bungalow, which I also used as my office. Jen: When I started Knock Knock, I lived right around the corner, just off Abbot Kinney. We head over to the Fourth Space, a recreational area where the team lets off steam, has lunch, hangs out and plays ping-pong (they get competitive around here), and talk to Jen and Craig about the key to Knock Knock’s success as well as the creative and business process behind the scenes.Īndrew: What was the idea behind Knock Knock? On nice days they often open up the big garage-style doors to let more sunlight in, which is one of the many perks of working in Southern California. The structure of the building lends itself to an open and collaborative workspace. They are located only a few blocks from Abbot Kinney Blvd., where you can find great shops, art galleries, and restaurants. We were first greeted by Knock Knock’s publicist, Arnold Chavez, who gave us a grand tour of the office, before meeting up with Jen Bilik, owner and founder, and Craig Hetzer, publisher, for our interview.Īs expected, the highly spirited and lighthearted brand has a workspace that matches its attitude. They are sold in 6,000 stores across the United States, including such retailers as Barnes & Noble and Urban Outfitters, and also have extensive international distribution. Jen Bilik, Owner and Founder of Knock KnockĪ beautiful Thursday morning in Venice, California - I met up with the rest of the Dieline team at the headquarters of Knock Knock, a publisher of witty gifts, stationery, and design-driven books. Insane talent is rare, but you know, just talent is not rare and it doesn’t make you that special. So your talent is proven before you come into the interview. If we don’t look at your portfolio we’re not going to even consider you.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |