In the Bag: Steph Mantis
Our grab bags are back! For spring! And these suckers—25 girl bags and 25 boy bags—are going fast. Because we care about these sort of things, we want to tell you all about the amazing brands whose products are included in each little bundle. Companies like this one… —erica
The Company: Steph Mantis
The Founder: Steph Mantis
The Story: The Steph Mantis origin story includes a pizza parlor: She grew up in one (and a house too!) in Maine. Not surprisingly, she infuses that same affection for novelty and quirk into everything she makes and does it in a charming way—we’re talking vases that look like lamps and mirrors that pay tribute to Columbus’s ships. She also has a thing for animal butts. She transforms plastic ones—the rear ends of toys in their former lives—into crazy-cute magnets and key racks that are, you know, kind of a thing.
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Emerging Thing of the Week: A Startup Store
Love a rendering.
One of our favorite startups right now doesn’t live on the internet (yet). It sits at 144 Tenth Avenue in New York’s Chelsea. Rachel Shechtman, the merchandising powerhouse behind the company, has all kinds of tricks up her sleeve—including an e-commerce component that will launch with the concept officially officially launches in February—but we’re pretty psyched on v. 1.0. Until January 12 at A Startup Store, you can experience Birchbox, Quirky, Artspace, Bauble Bar, and Joor IRL. And! Of a Kind even has a presence. We commissioned an extra-special, unisex take on our very popular $45 holiday grab bags just for the space, filled with crazy yellow Richer Poorer socks, adorable animal butt magnets from Steph Mantis, chocolate googly eyes from Chocolate Editions, and a stripe-y tote from Baggu. You know, in case you need another reason to swing by the spot this weekend to wrap up your holiday shopping. —erica
