Partnership With International Sanctuary

It's official! Tori Higa Stationery and International Sanctuary have partnered together to design a line of stationery benefiting the brave young women who have been rescued out of human trafficking and are now given a second chance through the amazing non profit organization, International Sanctuary. International Sanctuary will now be completely in charge of all sales, distribution, and manufacturing for Tori Higa Stationery.

After five years of running my own business alongside my husband and amazing staff, we have decided to change things up a bit so that I can focus more on design (and my little boy) and Branden can focus full time on other endeavors that are his true passion (poor guy has done a lot of paperwork over the years as well as heavy lifting and his fair share of glittering).

When my dear friend Wendy came to me several months ago and asked if I could design a few cards to go towards the non profit that she and her friend Stephanie had started the year prior, I was very excited. And then I got to thinking: International Sanctuary already manufactures jewelry that is sold here in the states where proceeds go directly back to their cause and they were looking to expand in the retail market even more - it only seemed like a natural progression that they could start manufacturing other gift items as well...like handmade greeting cards. It was perfect timing because my true passion is design and if I can focus solely on design and let Wendy and her team focus on the business side of things, it would be a perfect fit! And to know that my company and designs can actually make a difference and help people is my absolute dream (and probably any artist's dream).


(Wendy and I are pictured above while backpacking in Cinque Terra circa 1998. Yes, I am wearing braids and overalls. No, I don't know why we are posing like that.)

Wendy and I never thought a decade ago while sitting in college art classes together and traveling on a study abroad program in Italy for a semester that we would now be partnering for such an exciting new venture. I wouldn't be able to leave the day to day operations to just ANYONE, but knowing Wendy so well and her background as an artist, teacher, and entrepreneur, I can't imagine anyone else being able to take on this role. I am just so excited. For the last few weeks Wendy and I have been busy filling orders together and completing "the merge". After the transition time, I can focus on new designs and Wendy and her team can focus on the day to day tasks.

THE BEST part of the whole thing is that a large percentage of the proceeds from each greeting card sale go to International Sanctuary which is a VERY worthy cause.

Hooray - after months of prep work this is finally happening and I am beside myself with excitement! :)

Things will be a little bit hectic for a few more weeks, but we are thankful for a stack of orders from the New York Gift Fair to kick start this collaboration. After we fill these orders, it will be time to hit the ground running with the new format in every way possible. Feel free to help us spread the word! In the meantime, please forgive me if my website doesn't match up with what is going on quite yet. Websites always seem to take a bit long to update (for me anyway).

Many thanks to Wendy, Stephanie, and all of the selfless volunteers with International Sanctuary who have made this whole process nothing but inspirational, encouraging, and exciting for me. Mostly, thank you for caring so deeply about these young women and truly making a difference in their lives in a very hands on and creative way. Many people talk about wanting to help others and really mean well, but you have truly given of yourselves 100% to create change and bring a fresh start to these precious lives. I feel so honored and blessed to be able to take part in even a small way. Thank you for making the opportunity a reality. I look forward to our partnership and can't wait to see where it leads!