Table for Twelve....

So.... Deb's been saying for ... oh, how many years now???.... that using thrift shop furniture as fixtures & props can be fast, cheap, easy, 'green', and add tons of personality to a retail store. Yes I have. Some of you listen and get it. Some of you frown and shake your heads and say 'TACKY'. Yes, you do. Admit it.

Well, thrifted furniture fixtures & props just hit the big time, my friends....
Check out this SWANKY style, presented by Le Vigne, a new wine shop in Greenwich Village, New York City, that is style personified. Working with a small budget ($25K) to open a new store left the owner with limited funds and options for merchandising. (Sound familiar?) Resourcefulness, imagination, and creativity turned out to be far more valuable than greenbacks in this case.
They've taken a slew of thrift shop furniture, restyled it, reformed it, redesigned it, and repainted it to create wholly unique and original fixtures to display their wine on. Genius. Brilliant. Stylish, Eyecatching, and a bit humorous - sort of makes me think of what a house might look like after a GREAT party with lots of good wine! If this doesn't prove my point that it's easy to be creative and green, well, I don't know what does. Apartment Therapy has a great write-up and photos of this shop... get over there!

(How I wish any one of the wineries I've worked with would have let me do something this amazing!) The idea would translate for any kind of merchandise at all, though - so get busy!

Image Credits: Sparrow King for Apartment Therapy, as found through VMSD search for La Vigne NYC.
Apartment Therapy asked me to 'also credit the photographer, Sparrow King'. So I added that.

On September 27, Spurse asked me to include the following credits, which include photo credits... I'm not certain, but I believe the Apartment Therapy article/post was written by Sparrow King, using photos by Madlab. In any case, here are the design credits:

Design credits for the entire brand and installation go to: MADLAB + SPURSE, a collaborative effort between an architectural design firm and an artist collective. Photo credits: MADLAB

More information about MADLAB and SPURSE is at:
http://www.madlabllc.com
http://www.spurse.org

I recommend that you check their sites out.... amazing inspiration!

Letter Perfect Displays

I was at the Sand Point Antique & Design Market on Sunday, and the vast array of great merchandise was astounding - second only to the marvelous displays that dealers created to show them off. Above and below, you see the stunning booth created by DeWayne Lumpkin. He's an interior designer and the owner of Home Economics, a home decor store in Grants Pass, Oregon. This was his first time at Sand Point, hot on the heels of a successful showing at the Seattle Gift Show. I love the graphic impact of the white mannequins against the black backdrop.
DeWayne's product offering was mainly the 'hot item of the moment' bus destination rolls. Graphic and contemporary, they have a vintage charm that works with varied design styles. DeWayne shared with me a few of his incredible ideas for a product line utilizing these materials - he is right on the cutting edge of the trend, folks. Brilliant mind for merchandising & sales! He shared his space with veteran antique dealer Susan Wheeler of Pink Lemonade (no web page, sorry) and their combined products made for a very intriguing booth.
People obviously loved it, as it was busy all day long. If you'd like to see more of DeWayne's merchandising magic, including shots taken in his store, check out his portfolio. Great ideas there!
Above are a few shots of our Retreat space at the show. Designers, decorators, and shop owners bought nearly everything in sight. I take great pleasure in hearing comments like 'I NEVER would have thought to do that with it!' and 'What a GREAT idea... Inspiring!' because to me, it's as much about providing inspiration and ideas to customers as products. Bring the goods, then show 'em what to do with it!

My booth designs for our products are like rooms in a home - only accessorized to within an inch of their lives. I create an environment that immerses them in our story. Retail is theater and I go BIG! And it works - attracts attention, inspires, and facilitates many conversations about what we do and how our customers benefit from it.

I do wish I had snapped photos at more booths.... I was just too busy. I will say that Linda at LuLu's, JoMarie at Rose~Marie, the guys at JohnBob CoolJunk, and Debi Burton at Ormolulu had absolutely beautiful displays! Suffice it to say that display is important in every kind of retail venue.