The encyclopedia · Strategy & Leadership · Strategic decision · 2005–2026
PaperMarket closes its Singapore store after 20 years, keeps the brand online
PaperMarket sold stationery and lifestyle gifts from Singapore stores since 2005 — rising costs made the shop unsustainable, so it closed and went online-only.
PaperMarket · 2026-05-04
What happened
PaperMarket was a Singapore stationery and lifestyle brand founded in 2005 by Elaine Ong. It started with scrapbooking materials, DIY kits and stickers, and grew into a lifestyle retailer carrying labels such as Kate Spade, Muzik Tiger and Baggu, with stores at Raffles City, Plaza Singapura and most recently Great World.
After 20 years the physical store closed. The owner said mounting financial pressures and rising costs made it unsustainable to continue as a small, home-grown brand, after months of difficult conversations behind the scenes.
The online store continues to operate. A clearance sale offered up to 70 per cent off merchandise, and even the store's furniture and display fixtures were put up for sale.
Why it happened
- The rent decided the fate: a single mall store carries a fixed cost that a small lifestyle brand could no longer cover as costs rose.
- A 20-year customer base could not pay for the channel: the brand was built in physical stores, but the economics survived only online.
- No scale to absorb pressure: as a small, home-grown brand PaperMarket had no other stores or margins to lean on when costs climbed.
The lesson
A small brand in a big mall is a tenant, not a category: PaperMarket could not make a store pay in Singapore's rising-cost retail, and the brand survives only where rent does not decide its fate.
Aftermath
PaperMarket announced in May 2026 that it would close its physical store after 20 years, citing mounting financial pressures and rising costs that made it unsustainable to continue as a small, home-grown brand. Founded in 2005 by Elaine Ong, the stationery and lifestyle retailer had operated at Raffles City, Plaza Singapura and most recently Great World, carrying labels such as Kate Spade, Muzik Tiger and Baggu. The online store continues to operate, and a clearance sale offered up to 70 per cent off merchandise.
Sources
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