Marita V. Pierce’s journey began in publishing through her family’s firm, Media Systems, Inc. Fresh from business school, she took over its management and became one of the youngest female publishers in the Philippines during her time. Her early work in desktop publishing, typesetting, graphics layouts, book covers, magazines, and paper products sparked a lifelong fascination with fonts, design, and the possibilities of paper.

In 1990, Marita began creating handcrafted greeting cards for an international exhibition. Her original 3-D designs attracted buyers from Italy, Japan, and the United States, including interest from Hallmark and American Greetings. As the business grew, she searched for a name inspired by high-quality Italian products. During a family conversation, her fifteen-year-old sister Lori suddenly suggested, “PAPELini!” Marita immediately loved it, and that day PAPELINI CRAFTS was born.

Papelini Crafts grew into an international paper-design business producing greeting cards, stationery, journals, paper bags, boxes, paper-mâché homeware, and paper-wrapped furniture. Its products reached wholesalers, distributors, department stores, and exclusive boutiques across the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, and other countries. Papelini also participated in CITEM and international stationery and houseware shows in New York, Paris, and Germany for many years.

Papelini Crafts became known for inventive approaches to paper design, including Kraft paper journals, corrugated and GI sheet journals, paper twine furniture, woven paper trims, boxes, ropes, and decorative houseware. More than 100 paper-woven designs were introduced internationally, demonstrating the extraordinary possibilities of paper beyond the printed page.

Managing a large production workforce inspired Marita to educate and train her workers, helping improve efficiency, quality, and output. She later transitioned into education and established the Preppi School Foundation, Inc., where she developed concepts, layouts, furniture, and teaching materials known as Preppi Power Kits.

Life has come full circle for Marita V. Pierce. From designing book covers and page layouts to creating handcrafted journals and innovative paper products, every chapter of her journey has led back to the written word. Today, PAPELINI has been reborn as a publishing house dedicated to sharing meaningful and inspirational works. What began with paper, creativity, and purpose now continues through books designed to inspire generations.