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Architects Jane Son and Megan Cassidy fashioned their on-line retail enterprise in 2017

Revealed Nov 04, 2024 • Final up to date 6 days in the past • 4 minute learn

Casson {Hardware} founders Jane Son, left, and Megan Cassidy. Photograph by Courtesy Casson {Hardware}

Jane Son and Megan Cassidy met on the primary day of structure college, forming an enduring friendship that finally led the Toronto residents to launch Casson {Hardware} in 2017. Casson is a web-based retailer celebrated for its meticulously curated {hardware} and design objects.

As skilled architects, Son and Cassidy have an acute understanding of type, perform and element within the items they select for Casson, whether or not a door deal with or wall hook. They work with artisans and suppliers worldwide to supply distinctive, small-batch merchandise that replicate an funding within the design and fabrication processes, says Cassidy.

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“Our intention is to serve each designers and householders by providing merchandise that aren’t solely stunning but in addition sturdy and sensible,” she says.

Postmedia sat down with the pair to listen to about their journey and accomplishments.

Kaskad pendant lights, sourced by Casson Hardware. — Kaskad pendant lights, sourced by Casson {Hardware}. Photograph by Courtesy Casson {Hardware}

Tactile expertise in a digital period

Son and Cassidy had been at structure college within the early 2000s when the analogue and digital worlds had been merging. It was a defining and dynamic interval, says Son.

“We had been lucky to discover the hands-on making of structure earlier than transitioning to computer systems for drafting and rendering. Throughout our first yr, we weren’t even allowed to make use of computer systems, which meant we had been utterly immersed in hand-drafting, constructing bodily fashions, and perfecting hand-rendering expertise. It gave us an appreciation for the tactile, handbook facet of design,” she says.

As a part of their program, they spent a time period in Europe, travelling as a lot as potential on the weekends, visiting design-focused cities.

“These journeys broadened my perspective, permitting me to see design in a complete new approach. Collaboration, experimentation and hands-on work had been on the core of the whole lot we did,” says Son.

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Seeing the world as a designer does

The depth of presenting your work and “defending your imaginative and prescient” at structure college was good coaching for presenting and articulating your concepts as a retailer, says Cassidy.

“We discovered to suppose each massive and small. On one facet, you’re contemplating bigger points like the dimensions of the positioning, infrastructure, and societal impacts. On the opposite, you’re interested by how mild strikes by means of an area, how supplies meet, how a door deal with matches within the hand. I really like contemplating the intricate particulars and understanding how they form the larger image,” she says.

Knot knob by Baccman Berglund, sourced by Casson Hardware. — Knot knob by Baccman Berglund, sourced by Casson {Hardware}. Photograph by Courtesy Casson {Hardware}

Why did they launch Casson {Hardware}?

They noticed a niche available in the market for a service providing a curated, design-focused expertise to assist designers and designers simply supply high-quality {hardware}.

“As architects ourselves, we understood the important function that high-quality {hardware} performs in elevating an area, but discovering items that complement the general esthetic was usually a problem,” says Son.

In addition they needed to supply an easy-to-use platform as a result of they know the way a lot time designers spend at their computer systems, ordering on-line, says Cassidy.

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“It was equally essential to us that Casson wasn’t unique to the commerce. We needed householders and design lovers to search out inspiration and worth in our choices, too,” she says.

Constructing a enterprise from the bottom up

Operating a retail enterprise is just like working as an architect in that it’s essential to put on many hats, says Cassidy. You’re juggling the design work with logistics and managing groups. Relying on the mission scale, you would be working with structural, mechanical, and electrical engineers, arborists, metropolis planners, constructing code consultants, and others, and that’s earlier than building begins.

They’ve needed to be taught new expertise with Casson, says Son, resembling organising an e-commerce platform, coding, working with suppliers, transport, logistics and customer support.

Funipart lace design handles sourced by Casson Hardware. — Furnipart lace design handles sourced by Casson {Hardware}. Photograph by Courtesy Casson {Hardware}

Curating with function

Visiting workshops, commerce exhibits and design studios world wide has uncovered them to a wealthy number of supplies, strategies, and design philosophies, says Son.

“From the meticulous craftsmanship of a small workshop in Japan to the distinctive design esthetic of Copenhagen and the revolutionary approaches in Seoul, we’re always impressed by the locations we go to. These experiences form the way in which we curate merchandise, permitting us to carry international influences and significant tales to our prospects.”

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What’s your high recommendation for designers seeking to begin their very own enterprise?

Keep true to your imaginative and prescient however stay adaptable, says Son. The enterprise panorama is all the time evolving, and suppleness is crucial.

Encompass your self with a robust staff, construct relationships with suppliers who share your values, and all the time prioritize clear communication — each together with your prospects and your staff, she says.

Don’t be afraid to take dangers; the inventive course of is about pushing boundaries, says Cassidy.

“And most significantly, simply begin. Concepts can really feel overwhelming, however you probably have a robust instinct about one thing, very similar to in design, belief that will probably be profitable. Have the energy and mindset which you could obtain it,” she says.

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