Don’t call it a publishing company. 831 Stories is selling romance as a concept.

BY VIKTORIIA VASILEVA

Photography by Nathan Bajar

When Erica Cerulo and Claire Mazur launched the romantic fiction brand 831 Stories last August, their intention was not only to invest in up-and-coming romance writers, but also to create immersive entertainment universes around their stories for the romance superfans. Think less Simon & Schuster and more Disney, A24, and Bravo—companies that turn shows and movies into expansive worlds through merchandise, events, and theme parks. So, before their first title, Big Fan, was even published, Cerulo and Mazur started rolling out a merch strategy that quickly became an integral part of their business. 

Most of the time, merch tends to be an afterthought. There is no shortage of brands that stick their logo on T-shirts and tote bags and put them up for sale or gift to influencers hoping to get cheap exposure or squeeze extra revenue out of their IPs. The opposite is the case 831 Stories. New merch is introduced alongside and between book releases in two strategic categories—community-forward pieces that play into the evergreen romance tropes, and in-universe artifacts based on the unique elements of each 831 Stories........

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