The company describes itself as a Singapore-based brand inspired by love, faith and hope, with its products intended to communicate Christian truth through accessible everyday objects.2

The Commandment Co. was founded in 2014 by Singaporean designer Edwin Lim. Before starting the brand, Lim had worked in advertising and became interested in creating Christian gifts that felt more contemporary and relevant to younger Christians.

According to an interview with Salt&Light, Lim had difficulty finding Christian gifts locally that were both meaningful and aesthetically appealing to younger people. He felt that many existing faith-based gifts were aimed at older believers and wanted to create designs that could speak more naturally to his own generation.

The company began relatively modestly with postcards featuring Bible verses, including designs incorporating calligraphy and photographs of landscapes. These eventually expanded into a broader range of Christian lifestyle products.

The brand’s early development also involved Edwin Lim and Li Ling, who worked together across their respective creative businesses. Li Ling is associated with the Singapore lifestyle label wheniwasfour. The two eventually became a married couple in 2019, while continuing to develop their brands together.3

Early philosophy

From the beginning, The Commandment Co. was not intended simply to sell Christian merchandise. Its founders viewed the products as a way of communicating a message to another person.

The idea is particularly evident in the brand’s long-running phrase:

“Send a Message. Inspire Someone.”

A gift carrying a Bible verse could therefore function as a small act of encouragement — something a person might give to a friend going through a difficult period, rather than simply an item displaying religious imagery. The founders have described the goal as using products to “speak light and encouragement” into people’s lives.4

The Commandment Co.’s identity is strongly rooted in Christianity and the Bible.

Its current official description says the brand is inspired by “stories of love, faith, and hope” and seeks to communicate God’s light through personalised designs and gifts.5

A major element of its philosophy is the idea that Christian faith can be communicated through ordinary, everyday objects.

Rather than limiting Scripture to conventional church merchandise, the company places verses, biblical concepts and Christian messages on things people might actually use or give as presents — including bags and pouches, stationery, notebooks, pens, jewellery, keychains, posters, homeware, plush toys, apparel, greeting cards, stickers, journals, decorative items and personalised gifts.

The company’s current store contains thousands of products and collections, including categories for accessories, bags and pouches, notebooks, apparel, aroma diffusers, posters, journaling products and customisable products.6

One of the most distinctive aspects of The Commandment Co. is its approach to Christian design.

Instead of relying exclusively on conventional crosses, church imagery or formal religious typography, the brand frequently uses humour, pop culture, everyday Singaporean references and contemporary graphic design.

Its best-known designs have incorporated biblical messages into packaging inspired by familiar supermarket products. For example, the brand has produced Christian products inspired by things such as luncheon meat cans, chocolate packaging and household products.7

This approach gives the brand a somewhat unusual position within the Christian gift market: its products can be overtly religious while simultaneously feeling playful, contemporary and culturally familiar.

Salt&Light described the brand’s audience for these products as particularly strong among younger consumers, noting that the designs appeal to people roughly in the 18–40 age range.8

The “Love Supermarket” concept

One notable example of this design philosophy is the LOVE SUPERMARKET series.

During Singapore’s COVID-19 period, Li Ling worked on designs that transplanted biblical verses and Christian principles onto the visual language of everyday supermarket products. The idea was to make God’s Word appear in unexpected and familiar contexts.9

This illustrates an important characteristic of The Commandment Co.: the brand often treats packaging and product design as a storytelling medium.

A Bible verse is not necessarily presented simply as text on a card. Instead, it can become part of a joke, a visual metaphor, a piece of home décor or the “label” of an everyday object.

Today, The Commandment Co.’s product catalogue is considerably broader than its original postcards.

Stationery and journaling

Stationery has remained an important part of the brand. Current products include Bible-themed notebooks, planners, Scripture pens, journaling stickers, washi tape, devotional and journaling products, and greeting cards.

Its journaling collection alone includes more than 100 listed products and covers themes such as hope, faith, peace, love, grace, growth and worship.7

Jewellery and accessories

The company also offers Christian-inspired jewellery and accessories, including verse bands, bracelets, necklaces, rings, cross jewellery, wristbands and keychains.

Its Verse Band collection, for example, features messages such as “Be Strong And Courageous,” “By Grace, Through Faith,” “Trust In The Lord With All Your Heart” and “Walk By Faith Not By Sight.”8

Personalised gifts

Personalisation is another important part of the contemporary gift positioning.

Products can include engraved brass keychains, pens, jewellery, verse bands, message plates and other keepsakes.

For example, its brass keychains can be personalised with a message, Bible verse or initials, with additional space for a name or notes.9

This allows the company’s products to function as both Christian merchandise and personalised gifts.

Home and lifestyle products

The range has expanded well beyond stationery and jewellery. Current and past products include aroma diffusers, night lights, mugs, cushion covers, serving boards, posters, plush toys, tote bags, decorative objects and car ornaments.

The current store, for example, lists products ranging from a Gospel of John poster and Jesus plushie to aroma diffusers and personalised tote bags.14

Another notable characteristic of The Commandment Co. is its emphasis on local creativity.

In an interview published through The Messenger, the brand explained that many of its products are locally designed and that it seeks to provide a platform for designers — including people without formal design backgrounds — to create Christian-inspired work.15

The company has also worked with independent designers and creative labels. Its current catalogue, for example, includes products associated with J&Co Foundry and numerous other designers or collections.13

This collaborative model makes the brand less like a conventional single-designer label and more like a Christian creative marketplace or curated design brand.

Gifting is central to The Commandment Co.’s business model.

The underlying idea is that a Christian gift can serve as a personal message.

A card saying “God is with you,” a bracelet containing a Bible verse, or a personalised keychain can become a physical reminder of someone’s faith or an expression of support from one person to another.

This explains why the company organises products not only by product type but also around occasions and recipients, such as gifts for fathers and other life events.10

In this sense, the company sits at the intersection of three markets: Christian merchandise, lifestyle design and gifting.

The Commandment Co. operates a physical retail location at Bras Basah Complex, one of Singapore’s longstanding arts, education and creative retail areas.

Its official contact page currently lists the store at 231 Bain Street, Bras Basah Complex #04-41, Singapore 180231.

The company lists weekday and Saturday opening hours and says the shop is accessible from Bugis, Bras Basah and Bencoolen MRT stations.11

The retail location is associated with both The Commandment Co. and wheniwasfour, reflecting the creative partnership between Edwin and Li Ling.12

Beyond physical products, The Commandment Co. has also experimented with Christian editorial and devotional content.

One example is The Messenger, a publication created by the brand around the concept of sharing relatable content alongside the Word of God.

Its issues have included devotionals, interviews, short stories, Christian reflections, inspirational wallpapers and discussions about faith and everyday life.

The publication reinforces the brand’s broader positioning: The Commandment Co. is not only selling objects with Bible verses, but attempting to create different channels through which Christian messages can be communicated.15

The COVID-19 pandemic was an important period for the brand’s creative development.

During Singapore’s 2020 circuit-breaker period, the founders responded to the emotional uncertainty surrounding the pandemic by developing products and content intended to provide encouragement and hope.

The Commandment Co. developed the LOVE SUPERMARKET concept, while the founders’ wider creative work also focused on messages addressing anxiety, uncertainty and perseverance.16

The brand has described the period as one in which its team was able to expand its design output and reach more people through social media despite the difficulties of the pandemic.17

The Commandment Co.’s audience can broadly be described as modern Christians and people looking for meaningful Christian gifts.

Its products particularly appeal to consumers who want Christian products that are contemporary rather than traditional, visually designed, humorous or playful, practical, suitable for gifting, personalised and appropriate for younger Christians.

The brand’s appeal is therefore somewhat different from that of a conventional religious bookstore. Its products are designed to function comfortably within modern lifestyle and gift culture, while retaining an explicitly Christian message.18

The easiest way to understand The Commandment Co. is perhaps as a Christian lifestyle design brand rather than simply a Christian bookstore.

Its competitive distinction comes from combining Christian theology, Bible verses and Christian messages, contemporary graphic design, everyday products, and personal gifting and encouragement.

That combination allows a Bible verse to become a bracelet, plush toy, tote bag, keychain, notebook, poster or even a humorous piece of supermarket-inspired packaging.

The company’s own description emphasises this purpose: using personalised designs and gifts to share God’s truth and love and encourage people who are struggling or weary.19

The Commandment Co. is notable within Singapore’s independent design and Christian creative scene because it demonstrates how faith-based businesses can use contemporary local design language rather than relying exclusively on traditional religious aesthetics.

Its work also reflects a broader Singaporean independent-label culture: small creative businesses, collaborations with local designers, pop-up and retail environments, locally recognisable visual references and products designed around everyday life.

Its collaboration with wheniwasfour is particularly relevant to this identity. Both brands emerged from the creative partnership of Edwin Lim and Li Ling, although they address different themes: The Commandment Co. focuses explicitly on Christian faith, while wheniwasfour is more strongly associated with Singaporean lifestyle and nostalgia.20

1. About Us – The Commandment Co
2. The Commandment Co – Contemporary Christian Gift Shop – bags, pouches
3. Meet the couple behind local labels The Commandment Co. and wheniwasfour
4. The Messenger – Kindness / Issue 19 – Flipbook by hi.thecommandmentco | FlipHTML5
5. The Messenger – Kindness / Issue 20 – Flipbook by hi.thecommandmentco | FlipHTML5
6. Collections – The Commandment Co
7. Journaling | Occasion | The Commandment Co – The Commandment Co
8. Verse Band | The Commandment Co – The Commandment Co
9. Classic Bar Brass Keychain – Personalised Christian Gifts Singapore – The Commandment Co
10. For Fathers | Occasions | The Commandment Co – The Commandment Co
11. Retail Shop / Contact – The Commandment Co
12. Wheniwasfour / The Commandment Co
13. TheCommandmentCo – Etsy
14. Collections – The Commandment Co
15. The Commandment Co. – The Commandment Co
16. The Commandment Co – Contemporary Christian Gift Shop – bags, pouches
17. Awesome Local Christian Gifts – The Commandment Co
18. Customizable Product | The Commandment Co – The Commandment Co
19. Customizable Product | The Commandment Co – Tagged “the commandment” – The Commandment Co
20. Customizable Product | The Commandment Co – Tagged “verse” – The Commandment Co