Not many people can claim to have had a beer named after them.
But David Stedman, of Dunedin, and fellow book binder Michael O'Brien, from Oamaru, were the inspiration behind the ale Bookbinder, brewed by Emerson's Brewery.
Qualified bookbinders were something of a rarity these days and Mr Stedman was always busy with ''more than enough'' work to keep him going, he said.
Late last year, he marked a decade in business in Dunedin, operating Dutybound in Crawford St, providing a bookbinding, design and restoration service for books and print related materials.
Born and raised in Dunedin, and with a family background in printing, he took an apprenticeship as a bookbinder at John McIndoe after leaving school.
Coincidentally, the premises in which his business was now based was the room in which he did his apprenticeship, he said.
Prior to establishing his own business, Mr Stedman spent 14 years in the bindery at the Dunedin City Library. He gained plenty of experience and managed the bindery during the second half of his tenure there.
When it came to going out on his own, Mr Stedman said timing was ''everything'' and it was the next thing he felt like he wanted to do.
For a lot of people, the idea of going into business was something they were curious about and they knew if they did not take the opportunity, it might not come around again.
But opening a business like his was was also risky. It was hard work starting a business up ''from nothing'' and it took perseverance to keep it going.
It was also a risk in terms of whether or not there would be a need for it, having worked at the public library where there was a ''captive customer if you like'', he said.
But he thought it would be interesting to find out and he had never run out of work, rather the business just kept ''building and building''. Mr Stedman's work was varied and he did not get stuck doing as much repetitive work as bookbinders used to, he said.
He has a small shop in his bindery, where he had an opportunity to be ''a bit more creative'', making the likes of hand made journals and photograph albums.
''I quite like the idea of making stuff from scratch and selling it,'' he said.
Attached to that were customers who wanted a bespoke binding for a special occasion, such as a wedding or retirement. He was able to personalise those using blocking presses.
He did some journal binding, although that was ''kind of dying'' for larger institutions, because of the advent of the internet.
He also did a lot of book repairs, and restorations when he could find the time, and he had some bigger clients to whom he supplied covers regularly. For the past several years, he has been doing embossing for some of fashion label Company of Stranger's leather goods.
A key part of Mr Stedman's work was small publishing runs, which often involved working directly with authors who wanted ''something a bit more bespoke''. It was very satisfying to offer that to people, he said.
There was a big difference between making small journals and doing fine restoration work and problem solving, so the job offered a lot of variety, which he enjoyed.
One memorable job was a book called The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde for the Brett McDowell Gallery, a collaboration between himself, Rob Lamb and Brett McDowell.
''We did quite a high level of finishing work on the cover which was quite challenging,'' he said.
Customers sometimes arrived with novel and unusual items, like a photograph album that was brought in recently, the back of which opened as a music box.
''It's amazing what people have got in private collections ... all kinds of interesting stuff. Occasionally you get stuff come through that's quite mind blowing,'' he said.
Mr Stedman did not use modern technology, which was an advantage because he did not have to invest in it. A lot of vintage machinery was involved, but there was no other way he could do the work, he said.
His book sewing machine, which was 50 years old, made it possible for him to do small runs of books.
Using machinery that was between 40 and 100 years old was ''quite fun''. It was fortunate he had a side interest in machinery and he looked after all his machinery himself.
''I've always had an interest in that sort of thing. It suits me to have that old equipment. I find it quite intriguing,'' he said.
Staffing was an issue, and there were not many places for people to start in the industry.
There were definitely people interested in bookbinding, and while he found himself ''desperately'' needing a hand sometimes, it had to be someone who was going to ''pretty much hit the ground running''.
Although he liked the idea of having people helping in the bindery, when you ran your own business, it was very difficult to find the extra time to assimilate somebody into what you did, he said.
''I have been bookbinding for 30 years. It's really hard to ... bring someone in to tackle the work I've got. It requires quite a high skill level.''
Passers by often called in, intrigued by what they saw in the window, and they were all ages, from retired printers to young people.
People still loved books, paper and print and old printing methods and it was being seen much more as art and craft. Old printing presses and related equipment were being saved, coveted and used.
Mr Stedman also felt fortunate to be working next to the warehouse precinct, while it was going through its phases of development.
''I'm right behind all of that. I can't think of a better place to be for what I do,'' he said.
When it came to his future plans, he quipped that it was: ''just get to the next book''. He had always wanted to have time to contribute more to the shop, because that was ''a whole lot of fun'' and a nice way to encourage people to come in.
''We'll see what happens. It's got a frustrating amount of potential at the moment.''
