Meet The Owner: Papél

Family businesses have a long history of success in Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill and Boerum Hill, as these small neighborhoods enjoy supporting mom 'n' pop shops over cookie cutter chains and big box stores. Some have been running for decades, like , and .

Others, such as , are much younger by comparison. But its story is just as sweetly sentimental.

"I opened Papél with my father, who had owned his own business selling fiber optic cables my entire life," says owner Raegan Hirvela. "He knew nothing about stationery but he knew business and he knew sales, and he knew it really, really well. So he was my sounding board. I could have never opened it up without him," she added. 

Another perk of employing a family member? They come cheap.

"He worked for free," recalled Hirvela, laughing. "He would always joke that he couldn't even collect unemployment because I didn't pay him."

Dad was also easygoing about some of the racier greeting cards for sale in the shop.

"My sense of humor is my family’s sense of humor," she says. "For instance, I would get him a card that said 'Happy Birthday, You Old Bastard!' and he loved it. That's how we are."

Inspired by love.

The inspiration for the stationery boutique, which will celebrate its third anniversary this December, was planted as a seed when Hirvela got married and designed her invitations herself.

"I got such great feedback from people, I thought, 'Maybe I should design wedding invitations for a living?'" she says. After researching the industry, Hirvela ultimately decided that designing wouldn't be the right fit for her.

Still, the love of paper craft stuck. Eight years of corporate retail experience at Mervin's and Macy's later, when Hirvela was considering taking the leap and becoming an entrepreneur, her husband reminded her of her love of invitations. A modern paperie seemed like a natural evolution.

After taking several free business courses through the city, the SUNY Levin Institute, and with a private mentor, Hirvela began pitching her idea to investors and looking for a space in the neighborhood, where she also lives.

"One day I noticed that Alley Cat was closing, so I went across the street to my dry cleaner and asked, 'Hey, do you know who owns the space?' and my dry cleaner said, 'My mom owns the space,'" she recalls, still incredulous. "And then boom-boom-boom, everything started to fall into place."

Feeling as if it were 'now or never,' Hirvela took the leap, despite the misgivings of others.

"Basically we opened in what people say is the worst economic downturn. And so many friends, family and mentors would say, 'Really?' But with the support of amazing people in the neighborhood, we’ve made it. And, God willing, we will continue to make it."

Creating your own path.

One of the biggest reasons Hirvela feels customers respond to the store is because of the specific inventory it carries.

“I curate and hand select every piece that people find here,” she says. "Which is why we have different things from Kate’s Paperie or or others. Mind you, there is some overlap. But because they are big national chains, they’re not going to have a card that says “C***sucker” across the front—which is, by the way, one of our top sellers.”

The folks that design that specific card live right across the street, Hirvela says, which makes it even better.

"I am a firm believer in 'support local,'" she says. "The more folks from the neighborhood and Brooklyn, the better. It’s just a win-win for everyone."

Keeping it in the family.

Another reason Hirvela thinks people gravitated toward the store after it opened was the family-friendly environment.

"It was and still is a mom 'n' pop shop," she says. "I think they liked the idea of knowing my dad was behind the register. I got pregnant not long after opening, so he ended up helping out a lot. I think people really liked that there was this 63-year-old man working at this somewhat hip stationery store, charming ladies with the bag of dried apricots he kept behind the counter."

Since opening, Papél has expanded from stationery to accessories and gift items, such as Japanese masking tape, children's toys and craft books.

"One thing that does really well is the card set with a silhouette of Tom Hanks circa 1988 in Big and the letters “T. Hanks,” she says. Graphite-object pencils are big around Father’s Day and the wall behind the register features a rotating collection of local artists from Brooklyn, she notes.

But of everything the store offers, Hirvela remains most effusive about the wedding invitations.

"That is probably one of the coolest things that we do because you really are becoming part of a couple's day," she explains. "Even if you never see them again! I feel so fortunate that the folks around here allow me to be part of that."

A soft spot for weddings, it turns out, was something her dad also shared.

"Every time he watched Father of the Bride, he cried," she said, staring off into the distance and smiling. "He loved it." 

About this column: Meet the Owner allows you to get to know some of the owners of local businesses here in Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill and Boerum Hill. To nominate someone for this spotlight, email editor Joanna Prisco at joanna.prisco@patch.com.