UMBRA'S FIRST CONCEPT STORE OPENED JUNE 1ST
Umbra opened its first concept store in downtown Toronto on June 1st. Located at 165 John Street (north of Queen Street West), the 7,000 square foot, two-level space will showcase the largest assortment of Umbra and U+ Studio Collection products, Umbra licensed products, as well as limited-edition, customized clothing, and made-to-order furniture.
“The time is right to showcase Umbra in its entirety. Umbra is a company that breathes innovative, inspiring and functional design,” says Les Mandelbaum, President and Co-Founder of Umbra Ltd. “We want the new store to be a destination for designers and customers alike who want to experience our brand. The company’s design philosophy is to be illustrated through the exterior and interior of the store, the breadth of products, and the involvement by our designers and international design partners.”
Umbra has again partnered with Kohn Shnier Architects and interior design firm Figure 3, who together designed Umbra’s award-winning Toronto headquarters in 2000. The exterior is wrapped in translucent pink cladding, while the interior is sleek, minimal and white – the perfect backdrop for Umbra’s dynamic and colorful products.
The store will host a number of Umbra events in an open concept lounge area with a multi-media wall on the second floor, including new product launches, product development seminars by Umbra designers and gatherings for the company’s international design partners. Renowned British architect, Will Alsop, has successfully launched Table Tools, a set of cutlery which premiered at the store as part of the U+ collection. Table Tools is now available at Umbra's online store and at select retailers where U+ is sold.
“Umbra has built an international reputation for unique and prolific design over the past 27 years,” says Paul Rowan, Co-Founder and Vice President of Design, Umbra Ltd. “Our approach to design starts with an investment in future designers. We partner with leading design schools like Ontario College of Art & Design, George Brown, Humber College, Carleton University and the Pratt Institute in New York. Our award-winning design team of over 30 men and women from all over the world and our partnerships with notable outside product designers are the heart and soul of the company. Each product created carries its designer’s name.”
The store includes a functioning design space where customers can see a different member of Umbra’s design team at work each day, as well as a rotating showcase of works by the company’s industrial, graphic and photographic designers. Chris Barnes, Umbra’s photographer since 1983, is the first to exhibit six numbered and signed limited-edition prints, displayed in Umbra frames.
To celebrate the opening of the new store, Umbra is donating one per cent of total sales from the store’s first year to support The Task Force to Bring Back the Don and its efforts to revitalize the natural beauty of Toronto’s Don River watershed, an area of great significance to Umbra’s founders.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
CANADA
Carla MacNeil, Jane Gill & Associates
416-922-4404 ext. 23, carla@janegillpr.com
Jane Gill, Jane Gill & Associates
416-922-4404 ext. 22, jane@janegillpr.com
USA
Cynthia Brody, Sally Fischer Public Relations
212-246-2977, cynthia@sallyfischerpr.com
UK
Julie Nuernberg, Wiggin Public Relations
00-44-(0)20-7736-6662, julie@wigginpr.co.uk
EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES :
We are currently looking for enthusiastic representatives for the new Umbra store. Please fill in our on-line application to be considered.
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