Design
aficionados and trade professionals will have an exciting all-new
design campus to source and explore in Spring 2006. The International
Design Center (IDC) by Miromar Development is strategically located
midway between Naples and Fort Myers.
More
than 80 internationally acclaimed showrooms will anchor the 250,000-square-foot
Phase I, expanding to 400,000 square feet with Phase II. The new IDC
offers thousands of design products for new construction or renovation
projects, from showrooms including Ann Sacks, Baker Furniture, Black
& Lenet, Campaniello Imports, Clive Christian, Elegante Hardwood
Flooring, Francesco Molon, Gallery on Fifth, Kravet Fabrics, Keys
Granite, Lee Jofa Fabrics, Paris Ceramics, Minimalista, Möbelform,
Murano Glass Creations, Pierre Deux, PranaSleep, Premier Home Theater,
Silk Loom, Stickley, The Wood Floor Company, Walker Zanger, Waterworks,
and many more.
World-renowned designer Juan Montoya is the artistic design director
for the project, explaining, “I am very excited about this opportunity,
being creatively involved in a commercial space that will be used
by other interior design professionals.” One of the top designers
in the United States today, Montoya and his interiors appear frequently
in national and international publications. His work is showcased
in a lavishly illustrated coffee-table book, “Juan Montoya.”
A consistent Architectural Digest Top 100 Designer, Montoya has received
numerous awards including the S.M. Hexter Award for “Interior
of the Year,” the Chicago Design Sources Award for “Excellence
in Residential Interior Design” and the Resources Council Roscoe
Award for “Furniture Design.”
Montoya
is a panel member of the National Endowment of the Arts, serves on
the Pratt Institute Board of Trustees, and was inducted into the Interior
Design Hall of Fame in 1998.
This is the first design center developed with a first floor that
presents exquisite new collections in an easy, “consumer friendly”
environment that welcomes shoppers into the fascinating world of design,
while the second and third floors are restricted to professional trade
access only. A brand-new designer concierge/shopping service is offered
for consumers to access the exclusive “trade-only” showrooms
on the upper floors. This personal shopping service (DOC or “Designer
on Call”™) provides a professional designer to assist
with custom specification and purchasing options, and is available
daily.
Interior designer Maxine Corbett believes such a “one-stop shopping”
venue is invaluable and that the International Design Center will
prove a beneficial addition to the Southwest Florida marketplace.
Corbett’s interior design firm, Richlin Interiors, has offices
in Naples, FL. “Buyers will get to see and touch actual samples
and prototypes of what is available, and such hands-on experience
generates great enthusiasm,” said Corbett. “Also, people
today lack an abundance of time. I have clients who are simultaneously
furnishing four or five residences and a design center becomes more
than a convenience. It becomes a necessity.”
The Design Center will offer an abundance of conveniences including
educational programs for design professionals, CEUs (Continuing Educational
Units), as well as inspiring events and lectures covering new product
designs and trends for both designers and consumers. Also offered
by the IDC for trade professionals is a “fly and buy”
program for designers and their clients, to source projects at the
center. A provocative ongoing calendar of events will include guest
lectures and magazine-hosted events. Additional on-site amenities
include valet parking, a restaurant and designer lounge defining a
new millennium for design centers. Future plans call for a 125-room
hotel and professional office park.
The IDC is the newest addition to the impressive portfolio of Miromar
Development Corporation, the international real estate development
firm who successfully launched the upscale Miromar Outlets, which
has over 120 stores directly across the street from the IDC, with
an additional phase opening fall 2006, as well as the award-winning
luxury residential resort Miromar Lakes Beach & Golf Club. Miromar
Lakes is noted for its 700 acres of aquamarine freshwater lakes, over
2 miles of white sandy beach, two 18-hole championship golf courses,
and a Beach Club featuring a state-of-the-art fitness center, European-style
spa, and the Blue Water Beach Grill. University Village, at the main
entrance of Florida Gulf Coast University, will include shops, restaurants
and housing for faculty and students.
Margaret Miller, President and CEO of Miromar Development Corporation
noted, “The IDC is the first full design center to be built
in the last 20 years. Miromar is committed to Southwest Florida and
its continuing growth, beauty and development.” Kauffman adds,
“We have established a roster of important players who anchor
this design center, as it sets new standards in the industry. We are
in the heart of one of the most affluent areas in the country, ideal
for business and pleasure, where the IDC will undoubtedly be a dream
destination for designers and consumers alike.”
The IDC is located at exit 123 off I-75 and is open Monday through
Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and the ground floor will host Saturday hours
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information please visit www.idcfl.com
or contact the International Design Center at 239/390-5111.