Some clever retailing in a little bookshop in Istanbul Turkey.
I love the city of Istanbul. I love its location on the Bosphorous – part Europe, part Asia. I love its Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia, its wonderful gallery Istanbul Modern and the coffee shop at the heart of the Grand Bazaar.
”…transport me back instantly to a late autumn afternoon and the sounds and scents of one of the world’s most exotic cities…”
Strangely though, one of the most treasured possessions I brought back from there is a simple brown paper bag. From a curious bookshop called Robinson Crusoe, the words printed on it transport me back instantly to a late autumn afternoon and the sounds and scents of one of the world’s most exotic cities.
There is so much added value that designers, craftspeople and retailers can use to create a point of difference, not to mention engagement, simply by telling their story.
Who would think of producing a bag like the Robinson Crusoe bookshop in Istanbul ?. The sides are printed in English and the vernacular language of the city. Laid out like an entry in a dictionary they read…
Robinson Crusoe – 1. The hero of Daniel Defoe’s novel ‘The Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe of York’. Mariner. Published in 1719. 2. A bookstore with a distinctive style of its own, in Pera, Istanbul, located on Istiklal Street, No. 389. A warehouse established in 1994 containing choice books. An archive where books are displayed & accessible to all. A town square, the gathering point not only of those who look & listen but of those who see & hear as well. A library where one goes not only for buying books but also to search for them & ask about them & browse around, sniffing the pages of & encountering, discovering & even writing books.
The words paint a thousand pictures. As the experience of my visit is recalled, its value increases with every syllable.