Planning for Paperific

What really goes into preparing for a three-day stationery show

Next week, dream.design.bloom will be heading to Paperific in Melbourne.

The show itself runs for three days, but preparing for those three days started weeks ago.

There is the obvious part, deciding which planners, inserts, accessories and stationery to bring, but once I started working through everything that needed to be done, the list became much bigger.

How much stock do I take? How should everything be displayed? What information needs to be on the packaging? How many products need to be printed, cut, punched and assembled? And what happens if something sells out?

For a business built around planning, Paperific has certainly given me plenty to plan.

Deciding what to bring

One of the first decisions was what would actually come with me.

dream.design.bloom has grown into much more than a planner, and taking everything wasn't going to make sense. I wanted the stand to show how the discbound system works while still giving people the opportunity to discover the other stationery I create.

So I started with the products I most wanted people to be able to see and touch in person.

The Undated Monthly Discbound Planner will be at the centre, with different inserts people can look through and see how they work together. Around that will be Notes, Today and Memory Keeping inserts, Financial Clarity, dividers and accessories.

I'll also be bringing our A5 Discbound Notes Books, desk pads, sticker books and greeting cards.

And there will be something new to see.

I've been working on our Christmas range, and although it isn't quite finished yet, I'll have samples on display at Paperific so you can have a first look at what's coming.

The Christmas range will also be available to pre-order exclusively at the show, with free delivery and shipping from mid-September.

I haven't just been thinking about what I want to sell. I've also been thinking about what someone needs to see to understand dream.design.bloom when they first walk up to the stand.

Working out how much to make

Then came quantities.

When you sell online, you can make more stock as you need it. Preparing for a three-day event is different because everything needs to be ready before you arrive.

I don't know which products people will be drawn to or which colour they will choose. I also don't want to spend weeks producing large quantities of something that may come home with me.

So there has been a lot of calculating, adjusting and changing my mind.

For some products, I'm preparing enough stock to get me started and taking my printer with me so I have the option of producing more between market days if something sells particularly well.

For a small business where I make the products myself, it gives me flexibility without producing stock simply for the sake of filling boxes.

Then production begins

Once all those decisions are made, there is still the small matter of actually making everything.

A stack of printed paper on my worktable is really only the beginning.

Pages need to be cut and punched. Covers need to be laminated and finished. Products need to be assembled and then packaged ready for the stand.

Much of dream.design.bloom is produced here by me, so preparing additional stock for Paperific means repeating that process over and over again.

It's probably the part of preparing for an event that people see the least, but it is by far one of the biggest jobs.

Packaging for a different experience

Paperific has also made me look at my packaging differently.

Online, I have a website to explain what a product includes, how it works and what it can be used with.

At Paperific, someone might pick up a product before they've ever heard of dream.design.bloom, so the packaging needs to explain it clearly.

That has meant creating new product cards with clearer information. I've also had to think about how products will be presented when several pieces are purchased together.

It has been a much bigger project than I expected, but I think it will also make the experience of shopping dream.design.bloom in person much easier.

Planning the stand

And then there is the stand itself.

Two metres doesn't sound particularly small until you start deciding what needs to fit on it.

I want people to be able to see a complete planner, turn the pages and understand how the different pieces work together. At the same time, there needs to be enough room for the other products without the table feeling crowded.

I've been working out how to make the most of the space, while still making it easy for people to explore the planner and the other products.

I'm sure some of that plan will change once I'm standing there setting everything up, and that's okay

Sometimes you can plan something as much as possible on paper, but you still need to see it in real life before you know whether it works.

Something a little extra

I also wanted to do something special for the show.

I've been preparing 30 special gift packs, 10 for the first customers each day, each valued at over $25.

That created another little planning exercise of its own, deciding what to include and how to package everything so it still feels like dream.design.bloom.

They're a small thank you to the people who come along and support my first Paperific.

Almost there

There is still plenty of production to finish before I can start packing everything ready to leave my workroom.

But I'm getting there.

Preparing for three days at Paperific has taken weeks, but I'm really looking forward to seeing everything come together on one table.

Most of dream.design.bloom is experienced through a screen or arrives in a parcel.

Paperific will be a chance to see our discbound planners in person, turn the pages, feel the paper and see how the different pieces of the system work together.

And this time, there'll also be the chance to see what's coming next.

After all this planning, I can't wait to finally be there.

Paperific Expo
21-23 August 2026
Hyatt Place Melbourne Essendon Fields

If you're coming along, please stop by and say hello. I'd love to see you there.