We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Michelle Marks. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Michelle below.

Michelle , appreciate you joining us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

Inviting Affairs Paperie actually started in the wedding world.

In the beginning, it was all about custom wedding invitations — working one-on-one with couples, choosing fonts, paper, colors, and obsessing over every little detail so everything felt elevated and personal. I loved it. It was creative and meaningful, and there’s something really special about designing for one of the biggest days of someone’s life.

But weddings are also… intense. It’s seasonal, emotional, and extremely hands-on.

At first, I was doing everything — designing, emailing, revisions, packaging, shipping. And while I loved it, I eventually realized every single order depended on me. And I hit this moment where I thought, “Okay… I love this. But is this scalable long-term?”

That’s when the shift started.

I began noticing patterns — certain styles clients consistently loved, certain designs that kept coming back around. And I started thinking, what if Inviting Affairs Paperie could be bigger than just weddings?

So I started experimenting with smaller, more accessible products — greeting cards and stickers. Things that still felt elevated and on-brand, but that people could buy year-round.

At the same time, I realized I missed the retail energy. I missed seeing customers interact with products in real life. So I actually started Pop Shop ATX as a way to still get my retail fix — and to create a curated pop-up space where small brands could sell in person.

And that became a huge turning point.

Setting up at Pop Shop ATX and watching people shop Inviting Affairs Paperie products in real time was eye-opening. I could see what they picked up first, what made them laugh, what they showed their friends. People were grabbing greeting cards, flipping through them, adding stickers at checkout — and it was instant feedback.

That experience really shifted my perspective. It showed me that Inviting Affairs Paperie wasn’t just a wedding invitation business — it could be a full stationery brand.

From there, wholesale started to make sense.

If customers were loving these products in person, boutiques and gift shops might love them too. But wholesale required a completely different mindset — I had to learn about margins, inventory, packaging for retail, line sheets, production timelines. It stretched me beyond being a designer and into being a true product-based business owner.

There were definitely moments where I thought, “Wait… am I really pivoting this whole business?”

But it was exciting.

Inviting Affairs Paperie went from designing one custom suite at a time… to creating greeting cards and stickers… to building a wholesale stationery brand that retailers could carry.

And looking back, that evolution taught me that growth doesn’t always mean abandoning your original idea. Sometimes it means expanding it, listening to your customers, and being brave enough to follow the momentum.

Michelle , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hi! I’m Michelle Marks, the founder of Inviting Affairs Paperie and Pop Shop ATX, and I’ve always been someone who’s obsessed with beautiful details.

I’ve naturally gravitated toward design for as long as I can remember — especially the kind that feels thoughtful and personal. I notice fonts, packaging, color palettes, and the tiny finishing touches that elevate something from ordinary to special. That love for intentional design is what led me into the stationery world.

Inviting Affairs Paperie originally began as a custom wedding invitation business. I was working closely with couples to design invitation suites that set the tone for one of the biggest days of their lives. And I loved that — because invitations aren’t just paper. They’re the first impression of a celebration. They tell a story before the event even begins.

But over time, I realized I wanted to create products that lived beyond weddings — pieces people could enjoy year-round. That’s when Inviting Affairs Paperie began expanding into greeting cards, stickers, and thoughtfully designed paper goods. What started as a service-based business evolved into a product-based brand and eventually into a wholesale stationery company carried by retailers.

That shift allowed me to scale while still holding onto the heart of the brand: elevated, stylish, and joyful paper goods designed to celebrate life’s moments — big and small.

At the same time, I realized I missed the energy of retail — the creativity, the discovery, the feeling of walking into a space that feels curated and inspiring. So I created Pop Shop ATX, a retail space designed to highlight small brands and give them a beautiful, intentional environment to connect with customers.

Pop Shop ATX isn’t just about selling products — it’s about community and visibility. It’s a space where shoppers can discover emerging brands and where small businesses can have a physical presence without the pressure of running their own storefront full-time.

Between Inviting Affairs Paperie and Pop Shop ATX, I feel like I get to operate at the intersection of creativity and community — building my own product brand while also creating space for other entrepreneurs to grow.

What sets me apart is that I’m deeply detail-driven and experience-focused. Whether it’s a greeting card, a sticker, or a retail display, I think about how it makes someone feel. I believe beautiful design should feel approachable, fun, and accessible — not intimidating.

At the core, I solve a simple but meaningful problem: helping people celebrate, connect, and express themselves in a way that feels elevated and intentional. And for small business owners, I create opportunities for visibility and growth through a thoughtfully curated retail space.

What I’m most proud of is the evolution. Inviting Affairs Paperie started as a one-on-one wedding service, and I transformed it into a scalable wholesale brand. And with Pop Shop ATX, I’ve built a space that supports and uplifts other creatives — which feels just as rewarding.

The main thing I want people to know about me and my brands is that everything is intentional. I care deeply about quality, community, and creating experiences that feel inspiring and joyful. Whether you’re shopping Inviting Affairs Paperie or walking into Pop Shop ATX, my goal is for you to feel like you’ve discovered something special.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

A big part of what helped build my reputation in the market was consistency — in quality, style, and experience.

With Inviting Affairs Paperie, I wasn’t just selling stationery, I was creating a full brand feeling. People knew that if they ordered from me, they were going to get something elevated, thoughtfully designed, and beautifully packaged. I focused heavily on the details, and that attention to detail became something people associated with my work.

Another huge factor was word-of-mouth. Weddings especially are such a referral-driven space, and once clients started sharing their invitations, tagging the brand, and recommending me to friends, it created a ripple effect. One happy customer led to another, and over time that trust really built momentum.

As the business grew into greeting cards, stickers, and wholesale, I think what continued to set me apart was that I treated every product like it mattered — because it does. Retailers and customers could tell there was intention behind everything.

And honestly, building Pop Shop ATX also helped strengthen my reputation because it positioned me as someone who isn’t just building a brand, but building community. Creating a space for other small businesses showed people that I’m serious about the industry and invested in supporting it, not just participating in it.

So overall: quality, consistency, relationships, and community are really what built my reputation — and once people trust your brand, that trust becomes your best marketing.

Let’s talk M&A – we’d love to hear your about your experience with buying businesses.

Nineteen years ago, I didn’t start Inviting Affairs Paperie from scratch — I bought it.

At the time, Inviting Affairs Paperie was already an established and highly respected wedding invitation business in Austin. It was actually one of the most popular invitation studios in the city, with a strong reputation and loyal client base. And I remember thinking, “This is something special.”

When I met the previous owner, we instantly connected. We shared so much in common — creatively, professionally, even personally. Our values aligned. Our design aesthetic aligned. The way we thought about customer experience aligned. It didn’t feel random. It felt meant to be.

I truly felt like it was kismet.

But even though it felt aligned emotionally, I approached it strategically. I hired an attorney and went through the full, proper business acquisition process. Contracts, due diligence, financial reviews — all of it. I wanted to make sure I was honoring the legacy of the brand while also protecting myself and setting it up for long-term success.

Buying a business is very different from starting one. You’re stepping into something that already has a history, a reputation, and expectations attached to it. There’s responsibility in that.

But I also saw opportunity.

I saw a strong foundation that I could build on. A brand that already had trust in the Austin market. And I knew I could bring my own vision, energy, and evolution to it.

Taking ownership of Inviting Affairs Paperie was one of the most pivotal decisions of my career. It gave me a respected platform in the wedding industry, and over time, it allowed me to expand, pivot, and grow the brand into what it is today.

Looking back, I’m incredibly proud of the way I approached it — not just as a creative leap, but as a real business move. I honored what was built before me, invested in doing it the right way, and then worked hard to evolve it thoughtfully.

It started as a wedding invitation business that was already beloved in Austin.
Nineteen years later, it’s a brand that has grown, expanded, and adapted — and I’m grateful I trusted that original feeling that it was meant to be mine.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.invitingaffairspaperie.com / www.popshopatx.com
• Instagram: @invitingaffairspaperie @popshopatx
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-marks-sticker-queen-8401391b/