Back in 2021, if you were in the UK and wanted Hobonichi goodies, it was not an easy task. Aside from a few bookshops like Foyles occasionally carrying the A6, there really weren’t any local options. The only real way to get one was to order directly from the Hobonichi store — and that meant expensive international shipping and the gamble of customs fees.
Group orders were everywhere, but they often went wrong. The other alternative? Resellers on Etsy, often with hefty markups.
So I decided to give it a go. I treated it like a big group order, with minimal profit, just to make Hobonichi more accessible here in the UK. I wasn’t trying to become a massive Hobonichi retailer — I just wanted people to be able to get their planners without the stress.
Fast forward to now, and the landscape has changed a lot. There are more options, and access to Hobonichi from The official Hobonichi website becoming friendlier to international orders to sites like Amazon Japan has made things a lot easier. However, we’re still not an official Hobonichi retailer, because we don’t have a brick-and-mortar shop (yes, apparently that still matters! 😕). So while I don’t follow every single Hobonichi release as closely as I used to, I do still offer pre-orders every September — and I love doing it.
If you’re happy to wait a little longer and want to support a small UK-based shop, I’d absolutely love for you to pre-order with me when the time comes. 💌
And if you decide to order directly from Japan? I still totally get it — anything that helps you get your perfect planner setup is a win in my book.
Thanks so much to everyone who’s supported the Hobonichi pre-orders over the years. You’ve made it something really special 💖
We usually open our pre-orders in August, so if you're thinking of ordering through us this year, keep an eye out — we’d love to help you get your perfect setup.
