Georgi Michokov explains Paper Pages as being an online entity born from the adoration for printed materials, providing niche publications to Bulgaria
Online and everywhere
Having founded Paper Pages at twenty-seven years old, Bulgarian native Georgi Michokov began his journey as a business owner and provider of recondite magazines on a whim. Putting his plans into motion in the early aughts of the pandemic in April of 2021, Michokov describes the business as not being «the biggest establishment in the world». As a matter of fact, the magazine store is not quantifiable by size or held back by anything that’s tangible – besides the items being sold there.
Michokov explains Paper Pages as being an online entity born from the adoration for printed materials. While interested in subsisting in a brick-and-mortar location in the near future, Paper Pages currently operates from the confines of its owner’s apartment. «There is a spare bedroom in my apartment that I have since converted into an office area for the magazine store. Here, I make orders, ship them out and manage the daily necessities of the business».
Paper Pages – The Gentlewoman, Lampoon, and Kinfolk
The owner explains the thesis behind formatting Paper Pages, stating that due to the lack of circulation in sought-after magazine titles – like The Gentlewoman, Lampoon, and Kinfolk to name a few – Michokov made the decision to bridge that gap by taking on the role as a provider for these types of magazines. He adds, explaining that the lack of recondite magazines in Bulgaria stems from the geographic and bureaucratic hindrances of the country.
«If one were to compare Sofia in contrast to other cities in Bulgaria, the city would be most similar to Berlin or Paris. There is a sense of youth that’s attached to the city and a need to seek out creativity regardless of where it comes from». Due to the lack of circulation and availability of renowned, recondite titles, Michokov explains that Bulgarians relied, heavily, on their friends to assist them in acquiring these types of magazines.
This was heavily reliant on the fact that shipping costs were just as, if not more expensive than the price of the magazine. A quick and easy solution to this, he explains, was to get assistance from friends that were traveling around Europe. The task at hand remained simple: visit concept stores and magazine stands across locations like London, Berlin, and Paris to purchase these magazines and bring them back home to their friends in Sofia.
Do You Read Me? in Berlin as inspiration
Throughout his time at university, Michokov states that his worldview on magazines grew wide and large. Having had the opportunity to travel to bookstores around Europe, the owner gained insight and understanding to learn new titles and visualize the ways a magazine business functions. He shares, «when I was living in Berlin at the time, I had the chance to discover ‘Do You Read Me?’. I suppose this was the inception of the idea to start a magazine business. Paper Pages is just a variation of this intention as it is online as opposed to being a brick-and-mortar store».
Digital vs print media
The owner explains that as a society, humans tend to place more emphasis and value on physical items due to its tangibility. «Touching, seeing, and even smelling items, especially magazines, is a trait that I believe to be very important for a lot of readers». When prompted with physical copies of magazines from the U.K. like I-D or Dazed in person, readers from the periphery would explain their familiarity with the online content, but not the physical, paper pages of the magazine. This was the crux of how Michokov envisaged the name of the store. Elucidating that the name of the store was a literal take on the items being sold there, making it accessible to locals and foreigners to understand its unique selling proposition.
Receiving recommendations from his buyers on which titles to stock in his online store has left the owner feeling enthusiastic towards the reception of Paper Pages. He however explains that due to the size of the business and the ways in which it operates, Michokov is unable to cater to all of his customers’ needs. Being in business over the last two years has given Michokov some perspective on ways to sell magazines to a wide range of customers. Citing that he began experimenting with titles in the infancy of Paper Pages, the owner now knows which magazines accrue buzz from his clientele. «There’s been some luck for certain publications that I brought in for Paper Pages in the past. It’s grown a life of its own and developed a cult following».
Paper Pages: the challenges of a small business
When he first began the business, Michokov explains that he was working as a digital marketer on a part-time basis, leaving him with ample time to manage the technicality of Paper Pages. «When it began, I was able to juggle my time between my part-time position and Paper Pages. The flexibility I had, in the beginning, was part of the reason for my starting Paper Pages. It would dawn upon me, soon into initiating the business of the channels that I had to cross to obtain a crate of magazines to be unimaginable».
Nonetheless, Michokov persevered to see Paper Pages through. Employing assistance from his peers in marketing agencies to curate specific a design style for his brand, Michokov was able to ideate his ruminations into a reality.
Paper Pages: book festivals and flea markets
The visual style is recognizable as a standalone identity and reflects a design that is reflective of admired styles today. To compensate for their time and effort, Michokov contributes a set number of magazines to the work libraries of his colleagues. By doing so, he has managed to disseminate presence and brand awareness for Paper Pages.
Alongside managing his online store, Michokov additionally participates in book festivals, flea markets and has a dedicated Paper Pages store in the confines of a café in Sofia. «Customers are able to order magazines or coffee table books online and click on the self-pick-up feature on the site. They can then head to the café to collect their purchases».
The owner explains his need to expand to on-ground events as a means to create recognition for the brand. Continuing his efforts to bring more magazines and coffee table books into the homes and libraries of his consumers, Michokov looks forward to eventually forming a physical space for Paper Pages for the inhabitants of Sofia and Bulgaria at large. Adding to the vision of his business, he mentions a keenness to expand Paper Pages’ reach to locations surrounding Bulgaria and Europe at large.
Paper Pages
Sofia, Bulgaria. Founded by twenty-seven-year-old Georgi Michokov, Paper Pages is an online magazine stand born from the adoration and appreciation upheld by its owner.
