Compendium is a place where people love to come to work every day. As President and CEO Kobi Yamada says, “I don’t go into the office, I go to the playground.” Compendium makes products that inspire people from pop-open cards to gift books, notebooks and journals to greeting cards and children’s books. Little touches that make a big difference and brighten our everyday lives.
As a teenager, Kobi fell in love with the idea of “the human potential”, meaning anything inspiring or the science of higher effectiveness. This concept carried him all the way through college to today. “My dad brought home a pop-open card made by Compendium and I just loved it and I identified with the inspirational tone,” said Kobi.
In college, Kobi came across a second Compendium product in a store and contacted the owner. “I was on my way to Japan to start a career and I decided not to go. Instead, I took a 90 percent pay cut and came to work at Compendium,” added Kobi. The owner at the time couldn’t afford employees and the company was barely afloat, but Kobi was all in. “When I was a kid, I had eight paper routes, so I understood long hours and trying to make something work.”
Going from one employee to a building full of talent, the future for Compendium looks bright. “Every day people are in search of purpose and meaning. We are interested in being the company that amplifies what inspires and connects us as humans. We can do it beautifully and with great care and intention.”
To Kobi, connections don’t just stop at inspiring products but extend to the company partnerships. “Heritage Bank is all about community, really knowing the people you are working with, and that we’re all in this together. We’re not looking for a short-term transaction but a long-term success, and with Heritage Bank, we have a great win-win partnership.”
“Our relationship with Heritage Bank is respectful, synergistic and we are grateful for it. And, it’s not just about Compendium succeeding but all parties succeeding,” he concluded.