Happy Birthday History Ink
Little did we know when we founded our company, History Ink, in March 2021, that we would soon be hiring staff, expanding across the world, and learning so much - in just three years. But the demand for heritage services and history-discovery is great and seems to be growing. Knowing one’s roots and connecting to them is vital — in good times and in bad.
Over the past three years, we have forged meaningful business partnerships with cutting-edge agencies in the world of design and heritage (we look forward to working closely with History Associates Incorporated, a leading U.S. heritage consultancy, on an exciting new project launching soon). We have worked with clients from Hong Kong members’ clubs to London charities, international banks, and cultural organisations. We also opened a Singapore office and found the time to speak at conferences and literary fairs.
Some companies, such as our lead client, a global bank, take the opportunity of building a new headquarters to create new archive and exhibition spaces. They see the value in finding and telling their own rich history over almost 200 years — it makes for engaging displays, and it helps connect the world of work into local communities. It makes sense, too, when a venerable luxury hotel brand such as the Mandarin Oriental, celebrates the sixtieth birthday of its founding property in Hong Kong by calling us to make the exhibition now hanging to celebrate that achievement. You can read more about the exhibition here.
Speaking of exhibitions, we recently completed a pioneering digital history exhibition powered by touch-screen technology. Working closely with the incredible team at Airavata Productions, a digital experience agency, the exhibition tells the story of the building society movement in Britain through the archival lens. We look forward to sharing more about this story when the exhibition launches later this year.
It also makes sense, however, for organisations persevering in times of rapid change to look to their origins. We are helping members’ clubs as well as businesses and charities to secure their heritage — finding the early records, organising and keeping them secure, as well as finding new ways to share them with members, if not the wider public. We have helped individuals reconnect with their own family histories through in-depth genealogical research, and curated an exhibition on similar themes at the Hong Kong Goethe-Institut which was covered in the local press.
And as for we three women, all former colleagues in Hong Kong, we are now located in London, Amsterdam and Singapore - our meetings are triumphs of time-zone planning! In 2024 we were joined by skilled film and history researcher Megan Lee, our new History Associate, as well as employees in Hong Kong and the U.K.
As we mark our third birthday with pride - we aim to multiply that number by ten at least.
