Avorium: stylish stationery stores in York and Leeds

For Tom, Georgia and Olivia Calvert Christmas is all about presents – for other people.

They are passing on their passion for paper and all things stationery in their Avorium stores in York and Corn Exchange, Leeds.

The sibling trio from York set up Avorium with the mission to help customers ‘curate their dream workspace’.

Avorium’s pretty pastel stationery has definite desk appeal. And even though the world seems to be obsessed with touch screens and tech, they’ve tapped in to the love of old-fashioned paper, pencil pots, diaries, desk calendars, notebooks, coffee mugs and bookmarks.

It all looks gorgeous – with items made in pastel shades, trend-led colours and with personalisation to make a notebook a unique thing.

Says Georgia, 27, ‘between the three of us, we have backgrounds in sales, finance and marketing, so despite needing to learn and adapt a lot as we have grown, we were well positioned to start a business as siblings.

Siblings Georgia, Tom and Olivia Calvert set up Avorium. ‘We have lived in Yorkshire for 25 years and it has been amazing to feel a part of a community which has given us so much over that time. Running an independent business in York has really enabled us to engage with the local people and businesses in a whole new way, and we have loved every minute of it.’

Personalised products are a real hit and sure-fire festive winner, she adds.

‘Our personalisation service has been a huge selling point for us over the last few years, and has opened up a whole new customer base of gift buyers that we did not initially consider. In particular our notebooks and diaries, personalised with a name or heartfelt message, have proved extremely popular, as have our gorgeous pastel mugs.

Avorium’s pretty designs are sought-after. ‘One great selling point for us is that in both our shops, online and at our markets we can personalise all our products on the spot in a matter of minutes. This is typically a name or initial but can really be anything from a special date or a company logo,’ adds Georgia.

This Christmas sees the launch of the Midnight collection with notebooks, mugs and coasters available in a deep navy.

Tom said they loved the Corn Exchange unit when they saw it.

Desk must-haves for the WFH generation ‘It’s such a cool space. We have always liked Leeds as it’s more of a shopping destination than York which is more geared for tourism – York Christmas market is the absolute highlight of our year’, says Tom, 28.

Anyone growing up with siblings will know that rivalry and arguments can often be an issue – but the situation is much more harmonious at Avorium.

‘Luckily for us, our skills are all quite different, so we have naturally found our own departments,’ Tom says.

‘I handle customer interactions be that in the shop, email enquiries or setting up new locations such as shops or markets. Georgia handles our accounting, logistics and productions, and Olivia, 25, is responsible for our social media, marketing, and wedding stationery design.’

Georgia adds, ‘We will be spending Christmas together at our family home in York, after finally closing our shop on the evening of Christmas eve! We are incredibly excited for a busy festive season, but equally looking forward to a quiet Christmas at home!’

Follow the business on Instagram @avorium