Did we have a blast at our store yesterday or what? We opened our doors to a beautiful afternoon and to our ah-mazing customers during our Appreciation Event, which ran from 5-8pm at our little, pink store on John Street.

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , Events
on 2013-05-17 14:52:30.0 Read More ›

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We took our designers, staff and international sales team to a recreational activity that is, in a way, distinctly Canadian, LASER TAGGING!

Some snapshots of last night's non-violent event.

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , Events
on 2013-05-16 09:58:32.0 Read More ›

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Having a little fun in our office and wanted to demo what's DASH-able and what's not.

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , New Products
on 2013-05-15 17:18:19.0 Read More ›

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We had a blast meeting old friends and new in the Hong Kong Show last April. Sharing some pics of the people, place and product. Enjoy!

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , Events
on 2013-05-15 16:45:57.0 Read More ›

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Open the recipe box, sort through crumpled napkins or try to recall once again how grandma made that moist truffle brownie chunk pie.

We're on the hunt with our friends at BiteMeMore.com to find the BEST ORIGINAL baking recipe, and we're dead serious about the sugar.

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , Events
on 2013-05-14 17:26:50.0 Read More ›

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They just got done, and they're just about to start. For many, it's a milestone that is commemorated, and like all "commencements", they need to be inspired to move on.

Using our classic hardware to float cool illustration, our wall sayings remind of the simple things they need to hear.

posted by john paul
in Events , Umbra Marketing
on 2013-05-09 10:49:50.0 Read More ›

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Paul with student winners, Will Root (3rd Place), Mads Hansen (2nd Prize) and Fahmida Aguayo Lam (1st Place) with Scott Lundberg and Steve Diskin, Asst. Chair and Chair of the Design Dept. at PRATT Institute

posted by john paul
in Paul Rowan , Announcements
on 2013-05-07 10:02:53.0 Read More ›

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Umbra has an ongoing collaborative art competition at OCADU in our hometown, Toronto, Canada. Student artists submit their work for prizes and a chance to be published in our photo and wall art displays that are produced and distributed around the world.

posted by john paul
in Paul Rowan , Announcements
on 2013-05-06 18:10:56.0 Read More ›

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As the saying goes, if you want something to look special...make it in red.

Well it couldn't be any truer for our Matt Carr's latest iteration of the original Little Black Dress.

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , New Products
on 2013-05-03 16:49:43.0 Read More ›

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Back from my final lecture stop at Medellin, Colombia, the country's second largest city, and just have to share some snapshots and "thought bubbles" that made this trip extra memorable...

posted by john paul
in Paul Rowan , Events
on 2013-05-10 10:28:09.0 Read More ›

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I am Les Mandelbaum. President and co-founder of Umbra, 33 year old designer and wholesale vendor of gifts and home décor.

As someone who has been importing from Asian factories during most of those years and travelled to various Asian countries over 75 times, I have a strong reaction to the recent tragedy of the building collapse in Bangladesh.

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , Announcements
on 2013-04-30 12:10:18.0 Read More ›

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Our prez, Les, playing tug-of-war with our ANBO team during their annual sportsfest.

The recent tragedy that happened halfway around the world has got us thinking about our own team in Shenzhen, who we consider the hearts and hands that make our designs come to life.

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , Events
on 2013-04-26 14:30:22.0 Read More ›

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Santiago De Angulo did this sketch of me in Medellin.

posted by john paul
in Events , Paul Rowan
on 2013-05-10 10:27:58.0 Read More ›

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World Book Day may have ended, but we still have FREE SHIPPING, NO MINIMUM running until tomorrow (ends midnight EST)!

It's our way of making sure you have the shelves you need to enjoy your books better.

SHOP NOW before April 25 ends.

---

posted by john paul
in Umbra Marketing , Events
on 2013-04-24 12:56:28.0 Read More ›

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More pics of my "10/1000 Risks" lecture at Cafe de la Moda yesterday, attended by Bogota's talented design lot.

posted by john paul
in Paul Rowan , Events
on 2013-05-10 10:27:43.0 Read More ›

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Sharing pics of my first "10 of 1,000 Risks" lecture attended by some of Bogota's most promising young designers.

posted by john paul
in Paul Rowan , Events
on 2013-05-10 10:27:30.0 Read More ›

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Sharing the poster and info of my lecture at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana this coming Friday, April 25 at 6pm. I'm very excited to share some of the 'riskier' stories we had to make at Umbra, that allowed us to grow better and reach farther as a Canadian design company.

posted by john paul
in Paul Rowan , Events
on 2013-04-22 15:26:49.0 Read More ›

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More discoveries in beautiful Bogota. This city is teeming with taste, and you can really see the surge of modernism in hot spots and homes.


Nice interior in resto called Wok, which used magazines for their menu. (Great juice drinks too.)

posted by john paul
in Paul Rowan , Events
on 2013-04-19 15:41:11.0 Read More ›

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I'm on a whirlwind tour in beautiful Bogota to meet and mingle with some very talented young designer estudiantes and am just excited to see their creativity in full regala!

I'll be discussing the role of young designers in the industry with some peers, and look forward to the great exchange to happen.

posted by Paul Rowan
in Paul Rowan , Events
on 2013-04-18 18:11:12.0 Read More ›

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