La Postalera: The Most Special Souvenir Shop in Valencia

We travel again, and with travel comes experiences. The photos, the moments that we will always cherish in our memories... and, of course, material souvenirs, whether in the form of a culinary product that evokes the place visited or a souvenir. But we're not talking about mass-produced items that are bland and unremarkable; we're talking about souvenirs that reach another level.

Adolfo López and David van der Veen had been running Fandi.es, a photography and video studio focused on weddings, for over 10 years. They set up shop in the city center and noticed that every day, hundreds of tourists passed by, and 'what they could take away as a souvenir from Valencia was getting uglier and more neglected each day. What memories were we giving them of the city? Something had to be done,' as they explain.

What could be more romantic than receiving a postcard? Technology has long since replaced the 'send me a postcard' sentiment, but the creators of La Postalera transformed this custom into the centerpiece of their project. They took a location very close to La Lonja de la Seda and decided to open their first store in March 2019, a space dedicated to beautifully crafted souvenirs. 'La Postalera is a postcard made of emotion,' they assert, continuing, 'La Postalera is an experience in itself. It's sending a message from a place in the world to a special loved one and the joy of the recipient upon receiving their postcard.'

Valencia and its iconic buildings present themselves to us in a format we have hardly seen before. The Virgen de los Desamparados illustrated, facades of the seaside neighborhood of El Cabanyal, the city's gastronomy, oranges, flowers... even a fallera with tattooed oranges or a family enjoying time inside a paella. What once seemed clichéd is now modern and attractive thanks to their postcards. And not only featuring their own creations but also those of other artists and illustrators they have added to their portfolio. The Bic pen strokes of iconic buildings like the Estación del Norte or the Mercado Central by Jota Jurado, the plants of the Botànic made art by the hand of Adrián Teruel Ortega, or a grandfather making paella with his grandson by Asis Percalles, are part of their offering.

Along with this collection of postcard-shaped memories, they wanted to elevate the experience. Thus, their two stores offer customers a space to write postcards right there. And not just to write them; you can also buy the stamp and drop them in a mailbox from the store itself.

Those innovative designs transcended the paper format and started to become part of bags, socks, magnets, toiletry bags, notebooks, and even kitchen aprons, which have become a hallmark of their stores.

The world of design souvenirs, with them, soon reached other realms such as jewelry, ceramics, and textiles... 'We also work with many external creators who can produce items that we do not have the capability to cover. We started with artisans and artists from Valencia, but that was limiting, and now we work with many from across the country,' explains Adolfo López himself. In La Postalera, other objects are sold, such as Flora Veiga ceramics, Temple or Mirlo Blanco vases, and table pieces from brands like Eugenia Boscá or Doiy. Jewelry by Mitumi featuring distinctly Valencian motifs such as oranges, lemons, or orange blossom flowers are also part of this unique project that makes life-and memories-more beautiful.