While furniture for cats is not a novel concept, more designers use unusual and innovative materials to create a piece of art for feline friends. We interviewed the founder of Misspaper brand who shared how it all happened.
How did you come up with the idea of Misspaper?
10 years ago I graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznan (Poland). Shortly after I started my first job as a packaging and cardboard designer. This was my first time working with this material,and from the very beginning I knew it had huge potential and possibilities. To this day, I am professionally involved in this part of the advertising industry. It turned out very quickly that design is not enough. I started to think of different things to make out of cardboard for personal use at the beginning – furniture, toys, handbags, jewelry… At the beginning of my professional career, the world of cats was alien to me. I got my first cat as a birthday present, and this is how my love for these animals began. Benek is with me to this day, and years later Pianka came and stayed with us.
I had always dreamed about designing furniture and when Benek started to live with me, he immediately inspired me to come up with an object just for him. This is how the cardboard box came to be (miss paper). To this day it’s my most popular product.
I didn’t realise that cats and cardboard are a perfect duo. When my cat started to use his furniture as an asylum and a scratching post, I thought I discovered something wonderful for cats. I started to upload photos of a sweet, sleeping kitten. Immediately, I started to receive questions asking where can I buy this. I looked through the Internet, and I realised that cardboard cat trees are a popular product for cats, and the entire world offers various forms, shapes and functions. The interest in my scratching post was so big that I gradually began to transform this concept into a business under the Misspaper brand.
We were looking through the Misspaper website and Instagram, and we think you understand cats very well.
Maybe because I have
a cat’s nature *laughs* I don’t do market research before implementing new
products, I focus on my intuition and observation of cats and their behaviour.
They are very demanding and picky, and I respect that very much. I always ask
customers for a photo after they purchase a scratching post, and. I’m very happy when I see that the cat is interested right away. Sometimes I
receive information that this is the first cat tree they’re interested in,
maybe because I put my heart into it while preparing
each piece.
I always design them with
the cats and their owners in mind,so
that it could be more of furniture than a toy.
How long does it take to make the furniture? Do you take notice of the quality of the materials?
The quality of my
furniture is my first priority. Everything must be of the highest
level and every scratching post is put together
by me, although there are moments when I
need extra hands, and I
will probably have to change that soon.
Is the furniture safe for cats?
Yes, it’s safe for both cats and humans.
Can kittens use your furniture as well?
Of course. Some cats don’t scratch the cardboard, they treat it as a den.
How do you send out the furniture? Is it necessary to put them together, and if it is, is it complicated?
There is no assembly needed. They are sent as ready objects, even the biggest one – the cat cradle.
How should the furniture be taken care of?
The furniture will gradually wear due to the scratching of the cardboard, but this is also its purpose. The more it’s damaged, the happier the cat is. Claw abrasion is one of the basic activities of a cat and they do it several times a day. Through this action, they also leave a scent on the object, thus marking its area.
If you have a cat, could you please tell us more about them?
White Benek, black
Pianka. There is a total lack of love between them, from my observation. Who
knows how it really is. Lately, I’ve been learning about these animals and
their behaviour and.it
has allowed me to become even closer to them and understand – even a little bit
– these smart, wild animals. And thus meet their needs with my products.
Is there a product you particularly like? Are there some funny stories related to it?
The cat TV came to be as a house + a
scratching post. I didn’t know what to call it, so I asked my followers on
Instagram and my fan page. Everyone unanimously suggested a TV with a cat
presenter,. I was very
surprised and amused. And so, it became a TV, and it
showed that the relationship with the customer is important.
You make very practical furniture – a house for a cat and a scratching post. Where did this idea come from?
I try to make my products practical and for them to have more than one function. Den – scratching post, furniture for cats and their owners.
What furniture do you plan on making in the nearest future?
I have a lot of ideas
for future projects. Unfortunately, it’s going to take a lot of time. A strong
need for creation causes me to create something new. My clients really like new
things and .sometimes I wonder if I design for
cats or for humans, who are also very happy with the new scratching post, just
like their animals.
What dreams do you have?
To develop my company and take care of a project page only, not of all the functions like production, logistics, etc.
