No Surprise Fees at Delivery

We're a Canadian shop, and all orders ship with tracking from Vancouver, Canada.

Good news: import duties are already built into our U.S. pricing. What you see at checkout is exactly what you pay — nothing extra to pay when your package shows up.

Plus, enjoy free shipping on orders over $140 USD.

SORT Turns Nine: Looking Back at How the Shop Began

This September, SORT turned nine. To mark it, we went back through old photos from before the shop opened, and back to the story of how it all started.

Three studios in five years

Boxes, a printer and poster tubes stacked against a white wall during one of the studio moves before SORT

Between 2012 and 2017, we (Alvin and Vince) moved studios three times before finally settling into the space that's now both our studio and the shop.

Finding the space

Black and white photo of the future SORT space mid-renovation, with exposed ducts and a mitre saw

After a year of searching, we found our current space on Craigslist, of all places. It was a pretty beat-up office: drop ceilings, divided rooms, nothing special. But it was tucked away on a quiet street, and that was exactly what we wanted.

We knew nothing about renovation. Luckily, our landlord was kind enough to help with the fundamental buildout.

Starting from a blank room

Freshly painted white walls, a wooden ladder and a polished concrete floor inside the empty SORT space

All the dividing walls and the drop ceiling came out. A polished concrete floor went in, and the walls got a basic coat of white paint. We still remember how happy we were stepping into the space for the first time.

Building the cabinets and shelves

Board for the first SORT cabinets arriving at a workshop loading bay

An empty space was only the first step. We still needed cabinets and shelves. Our friend Henry Sun helped build all of our initial millwork. This is us at his workshop's loading bay, the day all the plywood arrived.

Designing the SORT wordmark

Hands refining printed letterforms with a pencil while designing the SORT typeface

Like the storefront itself, we wanted the SORT wordmark to feel effortless, simple enough that it looks like it was never laboured over. And yet, months of work went into designing the full typeface, with SORT being just one part of it.

Nine years later

Installing the original wood cabinets at SORT in Vancouver

These cabinets are still holding up well after all these years, and so much has changed around them. We couldn't have imagined how the shop would become what it is today, or all the wonderful people we've been lucky to meet through this space. Thank you to everyone who has visited, shopped with us or stopped by to say hello.

Exciting things are coming in the year ahead. We can't wait to share more.

— Alvin + Vince

Visiting SORT

SORT is at 2550 Stephens St in Kitsilano, Vancouver. You can also shop online at sortdays.com, with shipping across Canada and the US. If you're visiting for the first time, our guide to the stationery we carry is a good place to start.

Read our other Journal Articles