We often felt like the note-takers in the room at workplace meetings. So much so that we jokingly called ourselves The Scribes. We created the_scribes slack channel as a place to chat as friends. At the time, we had no idea that The Scribes would turn into so much more than a chatroom.

As our friendship developed, we talked a lot about our career plans, our goals, and our passion for entrepreneurship. In our former jobs in the eCommerce industry, we were often reminded that starting a business was more attainable now than ever. 

Here we are, the note-takers in the room with a passion for entrepreneurship. Why not offer the world a better journal? 

Worst case, we fall on our face and walk away with a handful of lessons learned. 

We wanted to create something people would enjoy using, but more importantly, something people would be proud to use. 

Our company’s mission

From early on, we wanted to build a business that would allow us to give back. 

We launched the business in November of 2019 and it was reborn in March 2020 when we dedicated ourselves to it. This happened to be the start of a global pandemic, but that didn’t necessarily phase us. We knew we were more than an eCommerce brand. We were a company that made a difference, and this was an opportunity to showcase that. 

We make journals for all writers. Whether you are a note-taker like us, a to-do list aficionado, or someone who enjoys a nice gratitude diary, we have a journal for you. We make journals for people with something to say. 

When you buy one of our journals, you join our team, helping us make a difference in the world.

Writing tools designed in NYC 

We offer a wide variety of journals and are continuing to expand our product line with other productivity tools. All of our products are sold on our website and shipped to your home or office on time and packaged nicely. 

We also have a thriving B2B business, selling personalized journals to companies big and small. We work in lockstep with our corporate partners to design the perfect journals for their team. Whether you want to buy 50 journals for a board meeting or 500 journals to use in your global recruiting efforts, we are the journal company for you. We treat your brand as our own, and focus relentlessly on customer care throughout the process. 

But what sets our B2B business apart from others comes back to our mission. If you are a corporate client and you place an order with us, we match that order with a gift of journals to the cause of your choice. We make the gift together, in partnership, and you’ve just turned an order of journals into something much more meaningful.

We’ve worked with over 20 corporate partners, providing customized journals for their teams. Some of these partners include:

• Kirkland & Ellis
• Prime Clerk
• Atlantic
• ServisFirst Bank
• OAR Corporation

Here at The Scribes, we want you to have the best journal for your goals. To know that your purchase aides someone in need with their goals is an added bonus. Creativity and productivity should be shared. The Scribes makes that notion a reality.

Buy one, give one

For every journal sold, we donate one. We’ve donated thousands of journals to schools, juvenile detention centers, and community organizations, all thanks to our customers.

To date, our list of non-profit partners includes:

• The Boys and Girls Club
• The Foundation for Education in Honduras
• NYC Department of Education
• Girls Who Listen
• The Women in Defense Initiative
• Free2Teach
• Morris Elementary in Huntsville, Alabama
• Tucson High School in Tucson, Arizona
• Vicksburg High School in Vicksburg, Mississippi

Our non-profit partners inspire us to do more each day. 

One partner in particular, The Foundation for Education in Honduras, has really shown us what it means to do the right thing and strive to make the world a better place. 

FEIH’s Founder and Director, Ramiro Ocasio, has always had a passion for serving others, and it started by sending small amounts of money back to his home country around the holidays to help families who were struggling. 

As more and more people came in contact with Ramiro’s passion for helping those in Honduras, FEIH formalized as a foundation and has since built 13 schools and counting across the country of Honduras. This gives some of the most impoverished students the chance to go to school and receive an education. 

After hearing Ramiro’s story and learning about the difference they are making, we donated 3,000 journals to the foundation. Every student in their school system now has his or her own journal. 

We will continue to support FEIH by donating journals and helping to make a difference in these students’ lives.

Staying true during disruptive times

It goes without saying that the Covid-19 pandemic shook a lot of things up. Everyone was affected. None more so than those on the front lines. First responders and essential workers became heroes without capes.

Throughout this disruptive time, we’ve doubled down on our give-back efforts. Staying true to our mission of serving others has never been more important. We knew that by doing this people would support us in return.

Here are just a few things we’ve done to support those who need it most. 

Supporting Teachers

We know teachers spend far too much of their own money on school supplies for their classrooms. 

We launched The Essential Scribe and donated to causes like Free2Teach, a supply bank for teachers to shop from at no cost. 

Supporting Remote Learning

For the safety of our younger generation, many school systems are going remote. What most people don’t understand is that going remote doesn’t mean that students don’t need supplies. 

In fact, they need more supplies than ever to emulate the classroom experience they are used to. We’ve partnered with organizations like The Boys and Girls Club and Morris Elementary to supply journals to students that will be received through socially-distant supply drops.

Supporting Causes that fight for equal rights

We partnered with Paige’s Candle Co of Brooklyn to bundle The Crosby Scribe and an Earl Gray Candle. What better way to relax and reflect on the day then lighting a nice candle and putting thoughts to paper.

A portion of all proceeds will be donated to The National Urban League, an organization that supports equal rights for all, especially for those struggling in urban areas.

We’re more than just journals. We’re a company that gives back. The impact this has on all of us is something we can carry with us forever.

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