Field Notes
| Industry | Stationery, Office Supplies, Collectable |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2007 |
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Aaron Draplin (Co-founder),[1] Jim Coudal (Co-founder)[2] |
| Products | Memo books, planners, stenos, pens, pencils and accessories |
Field Notes (stylized as FIELD NOTES) is an American notebook brand headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, that designs, prints and manufactures memo books and related accessories.[2] Founded in 2007, the Field Notes brand is a joint venture between Portland, Oregon-based Draplin Design Company and Chicago-based design firm Coudal Partners.[3][4]
Standard Field Notes notebooks come with ruled, graph, or plain pages in their signature "kraft" brown cover color. The brand has also become known for their smaller runs of limited edition notebooks.[3]
Field Notes are sold online and, across 1400 retail locations in the United States. The brand has also partnered with various companies including Levi's, Starbucks, Nixon, Loot Crate and J.Crew to sell exclusive release products, as well as collaborating with MythBusters' Adam Savage and reporter John Dickerson to create special editions.[5] Field Notes promotes its products through films made in-house by Coudal Partners.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ Kurutz, Steven (August 6, 2015). "A Design Guru's Work Lair". The New York Times. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
Aaron James Draplin - Graphic designer, co-creator of Field Notes stationery
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Written at Chicago. "Field Notes creates demand for nostalgic notepads". Reuters. Wire service. December 1, 2010. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
Since Field Notes began production in 2008, it has developed a significant following in the design community. The books, retailing at $9.95 for a three-pack, have also found a home in old-time venues such as bait-and-tackle stores, stationers, barbershops and the like.
- ^ a b Tschorn, Adam (July 25, 2012). "Lines from Launch LA: Field Notes serves up the write stuff". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 28, 2012. Retrieved September 30, 2012.
In a partnership between Portland, Ore.-based Draplin Design Co. and Chicago-based Coudal Partners, Aaron Draplin found inspiration to create the 5-year-old company's flagship product in the old-school agricultural memo book used by crop inspectors and farmers. And there is a certain element of seasonal style to the books, especially the limited-edition runs of specific colors and themed editions
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Moser, Whet (January 16, 2018). "Why Field Notes Have Remained Curiously Addictive for a Decade". Chicago. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
'Aaron, in 2006 or 2007, made about 200 Field Notes. He made them on a Gocco press, a little Japanese toy press, cut the corners round, and they look pretty similar to what they look like now,' says Jim Coudal, president of Coudal Partners. 'He sent them to some of his friends; I happened to be one.'
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Monllos, Kristina (January 12, 2015). "How Field Notes Made 48-Page Notebooks Worthy of Collectors". Adweek. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
That Field Notes has become coveted by collectors—some willing to pay upward of $300 on eBay for rare editions of the brand's utilitarian memo books—is a beautiful surprise to creator Aaron Draplin. Founded in 2007 with just 200 handmade notebooks, the company now produces roughly 75,000 per run and last year sold almost half a million of them.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Pavlus, John (February 3, 2012). "This Is How You Sell Products Now: Low-Budget, Heartbreaking Stories". Fast Company. Archived from the original on February 6, 2012. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
I recently interviewed the founder of a new production company that specializes in video storytelling for small brands, rather than traditional advertising. Coudal Partners has been making these kinds of films to promote its own in-house brands for a while now, and their slam-dunk effectiveness is heartbreakingly apparent in their latest piece, Red Blooded. Yes, they made it to spread the word about their new line of Field Notes notebooks