Cool Tees and Totes

I spent a couple of weekends in Bangkok recently, and my time there was a welcome reminder of the pleasures of big city life. A trip to an actual blues bar, several trips to, perhaps, Bangkok’s biggest bookstore, and a visit to the Chatuchak Weekend Market were among the highlights.

At Bangkok’s weekend market you’ll find a slew of young, up-and-coming designers, who produce cool and original stuff. How Many T-Shirt stood out to me: she designs mainly t-shirts and bags and has a non-Asian, almost Scandinavian style. (I noticed no less than three other Danes browsing in her little stall during the time I was there).

 

 

Beyond her great designs, I also admire her simple (and, I am sure, low-cost) marketing. A URL is printed both on the tags in all items and on the front of the little bag I received my purchase in. The URL redirects to her Facebook page, which features lots of photos of her products.

 

 

While the page is mostly in Thai, I get the sense that she succeeds in using Facebook in the way that most big corporations wish they could figure out: she establishes a personal connection with her customers. Her Facebook fans are her friends.

Perhaps the reason is that she runs a start-up, and most of her customers are her actual friends. Or perhaps it’s because she names her photo albums things like “Friends and Tees”. Either way, I find myself happy to be her friend-fan, and I’ll definitely visit her again the next time I find myself in Bangkok.

Take the Time to Listen

Stories are best heard, and told, live. Still, this video, with story by Studs Terkel, is an inspiring and worthwhile reminder:

The Human Voice from StoryCorps on Vimeo.

StoryCorps is one of now many organizations that gather and share true, personal stories. Visit their website to listen to more stories. Or move away from the screen, go see real people, and listen to their stories.

Enjoy your weekend!