VMSD - July 2014 - (Page 4)
FE
FROM THE EDITOR
Portrait of
an Artist
A visual pied piper creates
community.
On a sunny Sunday afternoon in late May, I stood in the entrance
to the recently refreshed Hickey Freeman store on Madison Avenue
in New York, flanked by a small army of nattily dressed male mannequins, cleverly positioned to show off the latest spring fashions by
the venerable American menswear retailer. Bright-patterned shirts,
creamy linen slacks and jauntily positioned hats adorned the fashion
vanguard, ties magically held aloft as if lifted by a gentle breeze - a signature visual element of the designer I was there to visit.
I glanced outside the glass front door and across the busy avenue -
seemingly oblivious to the human and vehicular traffic racing past him
- stood a slim, cool-casual dressed man, munching on an apple while
intently studying the narrow store façade above me. Catching my gaze,
he ditched the core and sprinted across the street to greet me, a human
hurricane of gestures and exclamations.
Tom Beebe, Hickey Freeman/W Diamond Group's vp, creative director and our industry's tireless promoter of all things visual merchandising,
is a design dynamo and industry legend, and yet he shies away from the
spotlight, letting others shine. Case in point: the Algonquin Wits & Wizards event (see page 12), that started as a casual coffee klatch of Tom's
industry friends, and has since grown to thrice-yearly gatherings of industry insiders, with sponsorships and noted guest speakers. And yet, Tom
remains determined to retain the fun, casual atmosphere of those small
early get-togethers (where he scrambled to scrimp together a few bucks
for cheese and crackers and everyone went dutch on the drinks), artfully
wrangling a growing guest list while remaining committed to including
eager young design students and struggling artists.
Tom led me on a whirlwind tour of his refreshed store, generously
crediting outside designers and suppliers who helped achieve the
retailer's vision. In a tiny back office, delicate pencil drawings of future
displays lay strewn about his desk, evidence of a playful, vivid imagination and attention to visual craftsmanship.
Later, over drinks at a nearby bistro, we laughed and gossiped a bit,
and pondered the ephemeral nature of visual merchandising and the
vagaries of retail: here today, gone tomorrow. Tom is old-school professional: committed to his craft, passionate, not afraid to get his hands
dirty (rubber bands stacked on his wrist, T-pin in his lapel) but also
future focused and open to the new.
And then, as quickly as he had appeared, he was gone, dashing
uptown on his weekend night to offer support and counsel to an emerging young artist, his familiar sign-off echoing in my head, "As we spin,
spin, spin..."
4 JULY 2014 | vmsd.com
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EDITORIAL
Editor-in-Chief Patricia Sheehan
patricia.sheehan@stmediagroup.com
Managing Editor Robin Donovan
robin.donovan@stmediagroup.com
Art Director Don Heyl
don.heyl@stmediagroup.com
Assistant Editor Carly Hagedon
carly.hagedon@stmediagroup.com
New York Editor Eric Feigenbaum
European Editor John Ryan, London
Contributing Writers Steve Kaufman,
Gina Ragone, Julie Thompson, Sarah Whitman
Contributing Photographer Richard Cadan
BRAND & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Senior VP/Group Publisher
U.S. / Canada
Murray Kasmenn
murray.kasmenn@stmediagroup.com
P: 770.578.2577
Senior Market Strategist
Ben Skidmore
ben.skidmore@stmediagroup.com
P: 972.587.9064
International Market Strategist
Patricia Iannelli
patricia.iannelli@stmediagroup.com
Via G. Rossini 16, 21100 Varese, Italy
P: +39.0332.240285
Integrated Marketing Specialist
Brittany Lucero
brittany.lucero@stmediagroup.com
P: 470.545.3667
Publishing & Brand Services Coordinator
Christine Lewis
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P: 770.874.7834
C O R P O R AT E
President Tedd Swormstedt
Senior VP Content Steve Duccilli
Audience Development Director Christine Baloga
Production Coordinator Mark Kissling
Book Division Director Mark Kissling
Reprint Information 717-632-3535, ext. 8265
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of VMSD - July 2014
VMSD - July 2014
Contents
On the Edge
High-Rise Hutong
Brick, Mortar and Pestle
From the Editor
VMSD Editorial Advisory Board
The Goods
Showroom: Mannequins
Showroom: Props & Decs
Ad Index
Checking Out
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