StoryTerrace transforms a lifetime of milestones and memories into a beautifully bound book that stands the test of time.
The company sends out a welcome box to get the process rolling PHOTO COURTESY OF BRAND
Rutger Bruining was always fascinated by the stories his grandparents told him. “My grandfather and I would play backgammon, and he would talk to me about his life, about setting up a small resistance group, how he moved to the Caribbean with my grandmother after the war to start a doctor’s practice, playing sports and traveling,” he says. “All of these stories were very colorful, and after he passed, they just faded and I regretted not recording them.” After his grandmother passed away soon after, Bruining, who is originally from the Netherlands and now lives in London, felt that regret yet again.
Founder Rutger Bruining. PHOTO COURTESY OF BRAND
He eventually came across the website freelancers.com and had an idea. “I realized there were so many writers on the site with great degrees, who have written for top-notch publications, and they were all pretty affordable,” Bruining shares. “All of a sudden, I realized that this problem I had been thinking about, why we’re not capturing the stories of the people I care about, could be solved. There was something more meaningful for these writers to do than writing website content.”
Bruining’s idea—to pair professional writers with consumers so they can tell their stories and receive a bound book—officially came to light when StoryTerrace launched in the U.K. in 2015. (It came to the U.S. in 2017.) And the response has been incredible. “There’s one group of clients that tend to be 70-plus, and half of our products are gifts, usually customers buying for their parents for a milestone birthday or anniversary,” Bruining explains. While some choose to tell their entire life story in one tome, others create different books for various times in their lives—certain trips or different eras. Along with the finished book, customers can receive recorded interviews.
While the company has experimented with VR and other experiences, their goal has always remained the same. “Our vision is to create a world where every live story is captured in a meaningful way,” Bruining says. “Not in tweets, but with deep thought and reflection, and that the stories will last for over 100 years so that future generations can learn something not just about their parents, but their grandparents and greatgrandparents.” storyterrace.com
StoryTerrace pairs professiona l writers with consumers so they can transform their life stories into books. PHOTO COURTESY OF BRAND
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