Portfolio Kitchen & Home Announces Plans For A Kansas City Flagship Store

Portfolio Kitchen & Home, recognized throughout the Midwest as the premier kitchen, bath and home design resource, announced today its plans to open their Kansas City Flagship Store. The Portfolio Flagship Store, opening summer 2011, will be located at 215 W. Pershing in the historic Pershing Building, one of the jewels in the Midtown architectural crown that includes Union Station, Liberty Memorial, the original Kansas City Post Office and the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. A year in the making, the over 7,000 square foot Flagship Store will represent the most significant example of sophisticated design culture experienced outside of New York, Los Angeles or Chicago—an iconic symbol of great design for the Midwest.

An innovative store design, exclusive merchandise and one-of-a-kind client experience will be the hallmarks of Portfolio’s new destination Flagship Store. The numerous display environments will be designed to create an intimate experience that optimally showcases Portfolio’s signature product collections. Elegantly restrained spaces that translate the quality of materials and finishing apparent in all of Portfolio’s brands. “The Portfolio Flagship Store brings together our heritage of innovative products and design with a dynamic location that will showcase Portfolio’s essence as a unique and exceptional brand,” said Portfolio CEO/Principal Geri Higgins.

This dynamic location will showcase the entire collection of Portfolio’s custom cabinetry and value-conscious Studio PKH brands as well as their extensive array of services including space planning, design/lifestyle consultation, product specification and design trend analytics. New and unique products not found elsewhere in Kansas City will also be added to the exclusive Portfolio collection of brands. The Portfolio mission has always been to empower its clients through great design that expresses their personal style and with the opening of the Portfolio Flagship Store, Kansas City will have an even better opportunity to experience all that Portfolio Kitchen & Home has to offer.

Another key component to Portfolio’s past and future success is the incredible talent among its seasoned design team and their “client-driven” approach to design. The Flagship Store will allow the Portfolio design team to better engage with clients making the experience totally unique and more relevant to their needs and lifestyle.

The Portfolio Flagship Store represents another celebration of Kansas City’s vibrant, revitalized urban core, an attraction worthy of national recognition for its spectacular aesthetic and exclusive landmark location. The goal for the Flagship Store’s design was to create an interior that matched the beauty and attention to detail of the Pershing building’s elegant exterior - an urban cool setting with a strong nod to the building’s heritage of 1920’s sophistication. Portfolio sought to design elegant interior environments for their Flagship Store that translate the quality of the products and materials that make up the Portfolio brand - a showplace of fabulous products for kitchen and home that evokes the feeling of being in an exclusive 5th Avenue boutique.

“We could think of no better business to occupy this stunning space,” said Pershing Building owner Dan Clothier. “Portfolio has taken the utmost care to respect the integrity of the original structure while creating a distinctly new and exciting creative hub.” The Portfolio Flagship Store will also be a spectacular setting for a variety of activities including gallerias, cooking demonstrations, lifestyle seminars, charitable events, book signings and much more. The supremely equipped demonstration kitchen will be specifically designed to host live demonstrations as well as television and radio broadcast events providing a wonderful resource not only for their local client base but also for others in the architecture and design fields.

Upon its summer 2011 opening, the Portfolio Flagship Store will provide a rich, creative environment for the exploration of exceptional design and products. Through its design, product collections, art & artisan materials, accessories and more, the Portfolio Flagship Store is specifically modeled to its clientele and community while elevating their select brands beyond Kansas City to regional and national levels.

About Portfolio Kitchen & Home:
Over the past six years Portfolio Kitchen & Home has specialized in providing premium design and cabinetry for residential and commercial clients throughout the Midwest and beyond. Recipients of numerous awards and accolades for their work, including the prestigious Edward Tanner Award for interior design, Portfolio designers work daily with Kansas City’s foremost architects, developers, builders and designers on projects ranging from residential homes to commercial hospitality kitchens and multi-unit lofts and condos. In addition to design and cabinetry, Portfolio’s core competencies include product specification, space planning, design trend analytics and design/lifestyle consultations. Portfolio Kitchen & Home is a member of the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) and have had numerous projects featured in local, regional and national design publications.

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Hedi Slimane’s Sleek New Saint Laurent Flagship

For many, marble might conjure antiquity. But Hedi Slimane has put the majestic material to thoroughly contemporary use in the new Saint Laurent Paris flagship store in SoHo, which opened today. The brand’s first outpost downtown is part of Slimane’s revamp of the label, which until recently was known by the initials YSL. Black-and-white silk-marble panels flank the walls, lending an airiness and sophistication to the space, which also features 19th-century cast-iron columns and tin ceilings typical of the neighborhood.

Dotted throughout the store is antique furniture, personally acquired by Slimane, from early-20th-century masters — including a 1935 daybed by Jean Prouvé, metal armchairs by Jules Leleu, an oak tabouret by Pierre Legrain and a pair of Lattenstuhl chaises by Marcel Breuer — all of which speak to the heritage of the company that Yves Saint Laurent founded more than half a century ago. The museum-quality furniture is juxtaposed with minimalist details, including chrome and nickel vitrines, floor-to-ceiling mirrored dressing rooms and sleek screens of campaign photographs.

The new Saint Laurent sanctuary houses women’s, men’s and accessories collections, while also carrying limited-edition pieces like the sequined Daft Punk jacket and couture items. And even though the new store has barely opened its doors, already Slimane is looking to make over its uptown counterpart, on 57th Street. While the creative director’s tinkering with the brand’s identity has raised the ire of purists, it’s no secret that sales are on the rise, and it seems safe to say that wherever Slimane goes, shoppers will follow.

Saint Laurent Paris, 80 Greene Street, New York; (212) 431-3240; ysl.com.

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Portfolio Kitchen & Home Announces Plans For A Kansas City Flagship Store

Portfolio Kitchen & Home, recognized throughout the Midwest as the premier kitchen, bath and home design resource, announced today its plans to open their Kansas City Flagship Store. The Portfolio Flagship Store, opening summer 2011, will be located at 215 W. Pershing in the historic Pershing Building, one of the jewels in the Midtown architectural crown that includes Union Station, Liberty Memorial, the original Kansas City Post Office and the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. A year in the making, the over 7,000 square foot Flagship Store will represent the most significant example of sophisticated design culture experienced outside of New York, Los Angeles or Chicago—an iconic symbol of great design for the Midwest.

An innovative store design, exclusive merchandise and one-of-a-kind client experience will be the hallmarks of Portfolio’s new destination Flagship Store. The numerous display environments will be designed to create an intimate experience that optimally showcases Portfolio’s signature product collections. Elegantly restrained spaces that translate the quality of materials and finishing apparent in all of Portfolio’s brands. “The Portfolio Flagship Store brings together our heritage of innovative products and design with a dynamic location that will showcase Portfolio’s essence as a unique and exceptional brand,” said Portfolio CEO/Principal Geri Higgins. This dynamic location will showcase the entire collection of Portfolio’s custom cabinetry and value-conscious Studio PKH brands as well as their extensive array of services including space planning, design/lifestyle consultation, product specification and design trend analytics.

New and unique products not found elsewhere in Kansas City will also be added to the exclusive Portfolio collection of brands. The Portfolio mission has always been to empower its clients through great design that expresses their personal style and with the opening of the Portfolio Flagship Store, Kansas City will have an even better opportunity to experience all that Portfolio Kitchen & Home has to offer. Another key component to Portfolio’s past and future success is the incredible talent among its seasoned design team and their “client-driven” approach to design. The Flagship Store will allow the Portfolio design team to better engage with clients making the experience totally unique and more relevant to their needs and lifestyle.

The Portfolio Flagship Store represents another celebration of Kansas City’s vibrant, revitalized urban core, an attraction worthy of national recognition for its spectacular aesthetic and exclusive landmark location. The goal for the Flagship Store’s design was to create an interior that matched the beauty and attention to detail of the Pershing building’s elegant exterior - an urban cool setting with a strong nod to the building’s heritage of 1920’s sophistication. Portfolio sought to design elegant interior environments for their Flagship Store that translate the quality of the products and materials that make up the Portfolio brand - a showplace of fabulous products for kitchen and home that evokes the feeling of being in an exclusive 5th Avenue boutique.

“We could think of no better business to occupy this stunning space,” said Pershing Building owner Dan Clothier. “Portfolio has taken the utmost care to respect the integrity of the original structure while creating a distinctly new and exciting creative hub.” The Portfolio Flagship Store will also be a spectacular setting for a variety of activities including gallerias, cooking demonstrations, lifestyle seminars, charitable events, book signings and much more. The supremely equipped demonstration kitchen will be specifically designed to host live demonstrations as well as television and radio broadcast events providing a wonderful resource not only for their local client base but also for others in the architecture and design fields.

Upon its summer 2011 opening, the Portfolio Flagship Store will provide a rich, creative environment for the exploration of exceptional design and products. Through its design, product collections, art & artisan materials, accessories and more, the Portfolio Flagship Store is specifically modeled to its clientele and community while elevating their select brands beyond Kansas City to regional and national levels.

About Portfolio Kitchen & Home:
Over the past six years Portfolio Kitchen & Home has specialized in providing premium design and cabinetry for residential and commercial clients throughout the Midwest and beyond. Recipients of numerous awards and accolades for their work, including the prestigious Edward Tanner Award for interior design, Portfolio designers work daily with Kansas City’s foremost architects, developers, builders and designers on projects ranging from residential homes to commercial hospitality kitchens and multi-unit lofts and condos. In addition to design and cabinetry, Portfolio’s core competencies include product specification, space planning, design trend analytics and design/lifestyle consultations. Portfolio Kitchen & Home is a member of the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) and have had numerous projects featured in local, regional and national design publications.

View the original article here