Korean stationery brand Monami has opened a concept store called Ink Lab where visitors can mix existing inks to produce their own unique, personalised colours.
Reminiscent of a laboratory or cosmetics store, the shop has glass vials on display and an all-white interior. Lab assistants help visitors experiment with inks at a long, rectangular counter in the centre of the lab. They are regular employees who have been trained in colour mixing and colour theory.
Classes such as “colour your travel diary” or “decorate your blank canvas tote bag” take place in a separate meeting room.
Each visitor has their own dedicated workspace for making their unique ink. This includes a set of colour inks in dropper bottles, a tiny plastic cup for mixing colours, a colour chart showing colour combinations of all 15 colours, and, amongst other things, a pad for writing down the number of drops of each colour used in the mixture.
The new ink formula can include up to three colours and a transparent base. After choosing the colours and mixing them, the result is tested on a pad of paper. The assistant will need to know the exact ratio of colours in order to recreate the ink for the customer to take home in a bigger bottle. She will also ask the customer to name their colour, as assistant Shin Yoo-sun explains: “Naming is another fun part about the whole process. Some come up with ordinary names, while others bring up funny ones.”
The 30ml ink bottle that the lab assistant goes on to create costs 25,000 won ($22) and comes in a small white paper box with a custom colour ratio card that has an ink serial number. Customers can use this to reorder the same ink colour again.
Visitors must make a reservation in advance and the process takes approximately 45 minutes.
Monami also sells DIY kits to try at home. A customisable ballpoint pen kit allows customers to design their own edition of the brand’s signature hexagonal 153 Pen by adding different buttons, tubes, funnel ends, and springs.
Shin Dong-ho, marketing manager at Monami, has said: “Despite the not-so-great location, people all across the country visit Ink Lab due to increased demand for alternatives to mainstream culture. Those who seek individuality or are interested in DIY products are our target customers.”
People of all age groups visit the lab, but women in their 20s and 30s represent the largest segment.
Monami previously opened a concept store in Dongdaemun, Seoul called DDP Design Lab where customers can create their unique Monami pen for 500 won ($0.44) by choosing the colour of the ink, barrel or main frame, and the clip that goes on top. The store also offers a free pen-engraving service with purchase.
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