Design

Design firm Elefant Design & Strategy looks to add 3 jobs

By Newsroom

●

December 11, 2014

Elefant Design & Strategy has got the growth part down. Now it wants to focus on the work. The Troy-based design firm made a name for itself in design for everything from website development to print. The 1-year-old company has grow by more than 100 percent. "We are really focused on the design process," says Elena Kapintcheva, partner & designer with Elefant Design & Strategy. "Creating goals, conceptualizing, and execution." The firm is currently comprised of two partners. However, it plans to hire three designers in January. It needs the extra help to aid in its growing workload coming from a broad range of customers, such as local restaurants and coastal non-profits. "We definitely want to continue to grow," Kapintcheva says. "By hiring more talent we want to expand our design reach." Source: Elena Kapintcheva, partner & designer with Elefant Design & Strategy Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Latest in Design

Shinola watch company to add retail outlet in Washington, D.C.

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

November 20, 2014

Shinola, a manufacturer and retailer of watches and other high-end goods, is putting the shine on with its latest retail store. Excerpt: "Detroit-based Shinola continues to expand its retail presence beyond the Motor City, with a permanent, brick-and-mortar outlet reportedly in the works for the nation's capital. The company, which makes watches in Detroit, in addition to crafting bikes, journals and leather goods at a variety of mostly-American locations, last month said it was opening shops in London, Los Angeles and Chicago... Shinola had previously said it will have six brick-and-mortar stores once the Chicago one comes online in the Wicker Park-Bucktown neighborhood. Shinola’s flagship Detroit location is at 441 W. Canfield in Midtown, and the company also has stores in Manhattan and Minneapolis. It also has a presence in Paris' ultra-trendy Colette shop and in the Abu Dhabi airport." More here.

Forbes magazine spotlights business acumen of Fathead’s CEO

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

November 20, 2014

Forbes recently profiled the CEO of Detroit-based Fathead, a leading national supplier of life-sized vinyl wall graphics. Excerpt: "The ‘Core-Trust-Loyalty’ belief system has remained with McInnis over the past five years as Fathead recently shifted from sports-specific offerings to being a lifestyle consumer company. Now, as the company’s leader, part of McInnis’ role is that of a “psychologist,” somebody who understands the makeup and personality of the senior leadership team and, in turn, can motivate people in different ways." More here.

Designers come together to launch TAKD Design

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

October 23, 2014

Three designers from various backgrounds have come together to launch their own design firm, TAKD Design. Colin Tury, Sean Kilgore and Salvatore Asaro have spent the last year making everything from wooden bow ties to shipping-container architecture. "We were always intrigued about this multi-dimensional design focus," Asaro says. The Sterling Heights-based company helped design the shipping-container offices proposed for the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative’s offices in Detroit’s North End neighborhood. They are also creating a number of unusual consumer products from wood, such as bottle openers and bow ties. "We just launched the website store for that," Asaro says. "It's been pretty successful." TAKD Design is run virtually from each of the co-founder's homes in the suburbs. However, the trio would like to open their own office in Detroit next year. "We love everything that is going on down there," Asaro says. Source: Salvatore Asaro, co-founder & principal of TAKD Design Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Ferndale deemed leader in good street design, all-inclusive transportation

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

October 9, 2014

A coalition of groups that wants to promote transportation as an economic development tool and way to make towns more livable and equitable for all is touring Michigan cities that may be getting it right. And metro Detroit's Ferndale made the list. Earlier this week Trans4M led the Michigan Transportation Odyssey 2014 by inviting the public on a tour and discussion of five Michigan cities. With city planners, road engineers and business owners and others the idea was to show the value and challenges of good street design. That is street design that promotes walkability and livability and makes it easy and safe to get from Point A to Point B, especially for commuters without access to cars, or with limited mobility. Ferndale made the tour for its success at "embracing innovative solutions" such as buffered and green bike lanes, and its currently unfolding comprehensive Complete Streets plan. Detroit, as it awaits a new light rail trolley that's now under construction, was the starting point of the tour. Other stops were in Brighton, Lansing, Midland and Sault Ste. Marie. Source: Laurel Burchfield, Trans4M Writer: Kim North Shine

Cooley Law School building is one of world’s most impressive

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 14, 2014

A rainwater harvesting system, a green roof, low flow plumbing and other eco-focused features has landed Cooley Law School in Auburn Hills at #35 on the list of the most impressive law school buildings in the world, according to Best Choice Schools. Excerpt: "Established in 1972 in Lansing, Michigan, the institution’s Auburn Hills campus recently received LEED Silver certification. Renovations to the existing structure and an additional 64,000 square feet were designed by SHW Group architects and engineers, and include a green roof, rainwater-harvesting system, low flow plumbing, and an energy efficient lighting system." More here.

Detroit Custom Coach outfits food trucks, vans, and limos with new interiors

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 7, 2014

Here's a company on a roll outfitting coaches with luxe new interior swag. Excerpt: "As the owner of Detroit Custom Coach LLC, he knows a few things about building out food trucks. For the past four years, he's been fabricating custom food trucks — such as the newly finished Eskimo Jacks ice cream sandwich mobile — as well as turning limos and vans into rolling dens of luxury... It's a good line of work that allowed Ramos to turn former competitors into clients. His first business was a shuttle service called Night Moves Transportation. But when Ramos realized he could charge more to rent a party bus, he decided to build one... Recently a client hired DCC to turn a van into a rolling humidor, complete with high-end TVs and sound system. And while that was a big job, the most extravagant vehicle in DCC's portfolio is a custom project for Jim Beam.The bourbon distiller wanted the passenger shuttle running at its distillery in Clermont, Ky., to look like an old 1930s truck delivering barrels." More here.

Maker Faire at five: The community it’s forged and the future it needs

By Patrick Dunn

●

Arts & Culture

●

July 24, 2014

This weekend marks the fifth summer The Henry Ford has produced Maker Faire, showcasing local inventors, innovators, artists and creatives to tens of thousands of metro Detroiters. Metromode chats with a trio of makers who've been involved since the beginning about why the fair is important to them and what it needs to continue.

Treasure Trove expands high-end resale biz to Ferndale

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

July 17, 2014

A successful run at upscale resale in Grosse Pointe has led the owners of Treasure Trove to open a second location in downtown Ferndale. Like the Grosse Pointe store, the new store at 222 W. 9 Mile will sell antiques, gently used furniture, home decor, jewelry, and in Ferndale only, an unusual collection of wooden bow ties. Art, rugs, dishes and a variety of other goods are acquired by the owners or brought in on consignment, creating a place that attracts collectors and designers as well as budget decorators. The downtown Ferndale store opened on July 10. Source: Treasure Trove Writer: Kim North Shine

Detroit-based Shinola founder talks “American made” with Wall St. Journal

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

July 17, 2014

Cars aside, watches and bikes are the new big-ticket "Made in Detroit" items. Excerpt: "Not many people would relish the chance to pack up a sunny Southern California life and move to Detroit. But Daniel Caudill, the creative director of Shinola—a manufacturer of watches, bicycles, leather goods and more—has so much in common with the upstart company that he did it gladly. Raised in rural Montana, Mr. Caudill likes a good heritage back-story, and Shinola, a once-iconic shoe-polish brand that became a punch line (as in "You don't know s—from…") in World War II, has one." More here.