STICKY INSTITUTE

Sticky Institute is, as its name suggests, a Melbourne institution. Opening in 2001, Sticky is now entirely volunteer run, with more than 300 volunteers and a handful of staff over the years keeping the zine store and maker space running. “Over the years there have been some close calls,” says volunteer Sam Riegl. “We wouldn’t be operating today without all our volunteers and a little bit of luck.”

Make that outrageous luck, as co-founder Luke Sinclair describes it, “and a fighting spirit and desire fuelled by all the zines that have graced our shelves in that time,” he adds.

Since its inception, Sticky has stocked more than 19,000 individual zine titles from around the world. “We only stock 10 copies of any zine at any given time and they might be the only 10 copies of that zine in Australia,” says Luke. “When you come into Sticky and browse the shelves, what you need to realise is that you’re looking at precious items; objects that may on the surface appear like scrappy pieces of A4 paper but are actually priceless luxury.”

Sticky runs the Festival of the Photocopier Zine Fair each year in Melbourne and has stalls at zine fairs across the east coast. Over at Sticky HQ, regular workshops are held, and the space also provides photocopying, typewriting and stapling facilities. Beck Vinci started dropping in when she was in high school. “I honestly cannot imagine an alternative version of my life where I never went into Sticky and never got the chance to be a part of this community,” she says.

It’s also a great place to pick up tips on what makes for a readable zine (margins are your friend – you’ll need a 1cm allowance on all sides of a page when printing, advises Beck, and staple your pages). Being surrounded by shelves of zines is inspiring, which is why if a Sticky volunteer wasn’t a zine maker before their first shift, they’re bound to become one. “Anyone can make a zine as there’s such a low barrier to entry,” says Sam. “All you need is a piece of paper, a pen and an idea.”

While a lot has changed in the world since 2001, what remains the same is the indie appeal of the zine. “Zines tend to be discovered by a new community every year,” Beck says. “We’ve been telling people, ‘Zines are hot right now’ for the last however many years and it has never stopped being true.”