Jane Austen has been part of Bookishly since the very beginning, probably before I even realised what Bookishly was going to become.
One of our earliest moments of wider recognition came through Jane. Our In vain, I have struggled book page print appeared in the 2012 Not On The High Street Christmas catalogue, just a year after we joined the platform. Seeing that page now, it’s striking that a Jane Austen line was one of the first things to carry Bookishly beyond our own little corner of the internet.
At the time, it didn’t feel symbolic. It was just something that worked. But over the years, that pattern has repeated itself often enough to be hard to ignore.
A few years later, Jane showed up again, this time in a different form. The Obstinate Headstrong Girl sweatshirt was part of a shift for Bookishly, towards work that was more openly feminist and values-led. The pink sweatshirt with red text struck a nerve. It was bold and funny, and it carried a confidence that felt very Jane, even if it didn’t look traditionally “literary” at all.
Chatsworth House first got in touch about the Obstinate Headstrong Girl clothing, and then went on to stock the design across other products too, including tote bags and keyrings. That mattered to me not just because Chatsworth is Chatsworth, but because it reflected a shared approach to working with small, independent makers. Our keyrings are manufactured by Betsy Benn, and Lovetree Design, who have supplied our clothing from the very beginning, have since gone on to develop their own relationship with Chatsworth after being introduced through this work. I’m proud of the small ways Bookishly has been able to support other businesses as it’s grown.
Even after the original Obstinate Headstrong Girl designs had run their course, the relationship didn’t end. Chatsworth continued to stock Jane Austen products we designed especially for them, and the partnership has been significant both creatively and financially. Jane Austen has been central to that ongoing relationship.
When we talk about Jane Austen publicly, something clicks. She’s one of the clearest points of connection between what Bookishly makes and how people understand it. When we design around her words, there’s a shared recognition, people don’t need persuading of her relevance.
That connection shows up in smaller ways too. I sign off my emails with Most Ardently, and I always love it when someone notices and replies in kind. During the pandemic, this was my email footer. It felt appropriate at the time, and people remembered it.
Shakespeare has played an important role in Bookishly too, but Jane Austen is the constant. She’s been there at the start, at moments of growth, and at points where the business shifted direction.
Today marks 250 years since Jane Austen’s birth, and it feels like a good moment to pause and notice how often she’s been there, shaping Bookishly over time. Not as a marketing hook, but as something more enduring.
You can explore our Jane Austen collection here.