This coming Tuesday, Newel is celebrating Jim Aman and John Meeks at “Open House NYC” and Newel’s re-launch Anniversary, and what a show we are having!  Jim and John are combining their talents to create two special windows that ooze with style, taste, and a creative mix of our inventory.  Funny, when they each did their own window for our first re-launch opening both had that same electricity.  Oh, and did I mention the showroom?

Guy Regal and the collective team at Newel are using the extra large Crayola color box of fine and decorative arts at hand in the warehouse to imagine: “What if?” As I surveyed the items on the floor, I saw truly an eclectic mix of eighteenth through twenty-first century pieces.  It looks like there will be a nice dose of Egyptian Revival, along with English Regency and of course, French Art Deco.  I spotted some eighteenth century Italian and American mid-century.  Neo-classicism, as always, wins the day, but I won’t rest until I get my Rustic.

Our show format has real possibilities and must always be refreshed and re-displayed as imagination and time allow.  Today, many dealers lack the space to properly display their merchandise and have difficulty keeping it looking new; acquiring and maintaining the physical control of inventory is a daunting task.  Whether by owning or consigning, it is treated in the same manner: with insurance and accountability as to what and where it is.  Turnover is another matter altogether, having its own issues.  Putting on a “Newel Show” requires something uniquely challenging.

Newel was born with show business in its DNA.  We were born from it; Broadway was the essence of a “show” and we provided the goods for the stage starting in the late 1930s.  This proclivity continues today with TV, movies, and window display.  Our showroom now lets us have the same excitement as set designers, interior designers, or anyone with an imaginative visual sense.  It offers an opportunity for Newel to redefine itself in a new 21st Century format.

Now that we’ve had a year to appreciate what we designed, (along with a new database), perhaps we can challenge ourselves to use these innovations more collaboratively and creatively.  This should be where we really have fun and where the best opportunities of future growth through image and branding can happen. The space is now are stage to put on a show to entertain and captivate our clients!