<p>For many a small stationery designer, getting an order from <a href="http://greerchicago.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Greer CHICAGO</a> is a major milestone on the road to success. It was founded by Chandra Greer with a big-picture goal to &#8220;create a place whose purpose was steadfastly positive, a place devoted to good design, good feelings, intelligent thought and the celebration of beauty&#8221; — and she has accomplished not just that, but so much more.</p>
<p>Chandra is also dedicated to the notion of civility — which she defines as &#8220;a commitment to promoting appreciation, respect and doing the right thing.&#8221; Lofty goals indeed, and Chandra makes it look easy to promote them through a humble stationery shop.</p>
<p>With integrity &; ideals like these, I would think Chandra a good fit to sit on my <a href="https://stationerytrends.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Stationery Trends</a> Editorial Advisory Board — but her impeccable eye for product makes it a necessity. Perusing Greer&#8217;s clean, clever website is as close of a pleasurable experience as actually visiting a physical boutique as you can get.</p>
<p><img class="aligncenter wp-image-7106" src="http://thepaperchronicles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/chandra-1.jpg" alt="Chandra 1" width="618" height="613" /> <img class="aligncenter wp-image-7105" src="http://thepaperchronicles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/chandra-2.jpg" alt="Chandra 2" width="618" height="604" /> <img class="aligncenter wp-image-7101" src="http://thepaperchronicles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/chandra-3.jpg" alt="Chandra 3" width="618" height="557" /></p>
<p><img class="aligncenter wp-image-7100" src="http://thepaperchronicles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Untitled-copy5.jpg" alt="Untitled copy" width="618" height="596" /></p>
<p>With this kind of presentation — not to mention product — I was thrilled when Chandra agreed to take TPC&#8217;s Five Questions.</p>
<p class="p1"><img class="alignleft wp-image-6829" src="http://thepaperchronicles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/chandra.jpg" alt="Chandra" width="300" height="413" />1. SS: How did you get into this crazy business?</p>
<p class="p1">CG: Fifteen years ago I was in advertising, working at Leo Burnett on the client side, when I made the decision to start my own company built on what I had learned during my career — the power of communication and creativity — but also expanding into areas of personal interest, specifically promoting beauty, civility, kindness, appreciation and positive thought. I had always loved stationery and correspondence and thrived on working in a creative environment where I could interact with smart, interesting people. Opening my own retail store devoted to stationery seemed like the natural synthesis of it all and I have never regretted it or looked back.</p>
<p class="p1">2. SS: Are there any design or lifestyle trends you are finding yourself particularly intrigued with these days?</p>
<p class="p1">CG: I&#8217;m intrigued by the growing number of young people who are interested in what I call the analog elements of culture: letter-writing, typewriters, crafting, old cameras, etc. As society becomes increasingly technologically advanced, I think the appeal of these more soul-satisfying endeavors will continue to grow.</p>
<p class="p1">3. SS: What letter, card or invitation first comes to mind as the best you&#8217;ve ever received?</p><div class="inline-post clearfix"><div class="see-also byline">See also</div><div id="block-wrap-32961" class="block-wrap-native block-wrap block-wrap-23 block-css-32961 block-wrap-classic columns__m--1 elements-design-3 block-ani block-skin-0 tipi-box block-wrap-thumbnail ppl-m-1 clearfix" data-id="32961" data-base="0"><div class="tipi-row-inner-style clearfix"><div class="tipi-row-inner-box contents sticky--wrap"><div class="block block-23 clearfix"><article class="tipi-xs-12 clearfix with-fi ani-base tipi-xs-typo split-1 split-design-1 loop-0 preview-thumbnail preview-23 elements-design-3 post-2175 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-the-five-questions tag-cards tag-cat-seto tag-christmas tag-design tag-ferme-a-papier tag-sarah-schwartz tag-the-five-questions-2" style="--animation-order:0"><div class="preview-mini-wrap clearfix"><div class="mask"><a href="https://thepapernerd.com/the-five-questions-cat-seto/" class="mask-img"><img width="100" height="100" src="https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/ferme_welcomestranger_holiday_banner2-copy.jpg?resize=100%2C100&;ssl=1" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/ferme_welcomestranger_holiday_banner2-copy.jpg?resize=150%2C150&;ssl=1 150w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/ferme_welcomestranger_holiday_banner2-copy.jpg?resize=200%2C200&;ssl=1 200w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/ferme_welcomestranger_holiday_banner2-copy.jpg?resize=24%2C24&;ssl=1 24w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/ferme_welcomestranger_holiday_banner2-copy.jpg?resize=48%2C48&;ssl=1 48w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/ferme_welcomestranger_holiday_banner2-copy.jpg?resize=96%2C96&;ssl=1 96w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/ferme_welcomestranger_holiday_banner2-copy.jpg?resize=300%2C300&;ssl=1 300w" sizes="(max-width: 100px) 100vw, 100px" /></a></div><div class="meta"><div class="byline byline-2 byline-cats-design-4"><div class="byline-part cats"><a href="https://thepapernerd.com/category/the-five-questions/" style="color:#b79b0d" class="cat">The Five Questions</a></div></div><div class="title-wrap"><h3 class="title"><a href="https://thepapernerd.com/the-five-questions-cat-seto/">The Five Questions: Cat Seto</a></h3></div><div class="byline byline-3"><span class="byline-part date"><i class="tipi-i-calendar" aria-hidden="true"></i> <time class="entry-date published dateCreated flipboard-date" datetime="2013-12-11T16:47:05+00:00">December 11, 2013</time></span><span class="byline-part likes-count"><a href="#" class="tipi-like-count " data-pid="2175"><span class="likes-heart"><i class="tipi-i-heart-o" aria-hidden="true"></i><i class="tipi-i-heart" aria-hidden="true"></i></span><span class="tipi-value">0</span></a></span></div></div></div></article></div></div></div></div></div></tipimidc>
<p class="p1">CG: The best cards I&#8217;ve ever received are definitely those handmade with great love, care and ingenuity by my two daughters! A close second is a hand-painted card I received from a man serving a life sentence for armed robbery in a Michigan prison. He had seen a profile of Greer in <a href="https://www.dwell.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Dwell Magazine</a> and sent me a stunning, hand-painted card with a beautiful message sharing his love of letter-writing and creating his own cards and stationery. It was poignant, yet truly amazing.</p>
<p class="p1">4. SS: What are your three favorite paper lines?</p>
<p class="p1">CG: I absolutely cannot limit it to three. But among my favorite paper lines are Dee &; Lala for its gentle wit and exquisite design, People I&#8217;ve Loved for a unique aesthetic and expressiveness that lie completely outside the bounds of commercialism, <a href="https://riflepaperco.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rifle Paper Co.</a> because Anna Bond is one of the most gifted commercial artists of her generation, <a href="http://afavoritedesign.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">A. Favorite Design</a> and <a href="http://www.lafamiliagreen.com/cart/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">La Familia Green</a> for keen and intelligent cultural observations and <a href="http://www.oblationpapers.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Oblation Papers &; Press</a> for their clever and perfectly-rendered work that alludes to the past but appeals in the present.</p>
<p class="p1">5. SS: Is there anything you do personally to keep letter-writing, card-sending and invitation using alive?</p>
<p class="p1">CG: I keep correspondence alive every day by making interesting, beautiful, quality stationery and cards accessible to correspondents not only in Chicago, but across the country via our website. A couple came into the store last week and said their decision to relocate to Chicago vs. New York was based on the fact that Chicago has Greer. That revelation was a tremendous honor but also a reminder of how important what we do is.</p>