Retail Therapy for Home Decor – ELTE in Toronto

Was there anyone east of the Mississippi not outdoors this past weekend?   Warm, sunny, clear blue skies and fall color washed over the northern locations.  It was gorgeous and the perfect weekend for a break in Toronto, Canada.

We left right before the sun came up on Friday for the start of the most perfect weather weekend imaginable.  From Ohio, Toronto is an easy trek.  It’s closer than NYC but big enough to be bustling with energy.

Before leaving fellow blogger and Canadian Lisa Ferguson, founder of  Decor Mentor gave me the scoop on what not to miss for shopping in Toronto.  We visit Toronto frequently but having local input is always useful.  She sent me a wonderful list, all were good, but one really stood out: ELTE Showroom.

Deceptive from the outside – fabu on the inside!!!  Now I don’t normally visit retail furniture stores (as a designer I make or buy most things for less $ through trade showrooms), but when Lisa billed it as the Canadian version of ABC Carpet & Home I had to stop.

Once through the doors of this re-purposed warehouse one has to almost pick their jaw up off the floor.  It is outstanding and dare I say better than ABC Carpet & Home.  It was visually focused – not too much going on to compete for your attention.  I was struck by the cleanliness of the entire building and neatness of the displays with perceptive merchandising of products.  No cutesy stuff or over abundance here.  Shelves were appropriately stocked with dishware and home decor items, not over stocked – I hate that.  It is obvious why they were honored as top retailer in both Canada and the United States.

ELTE has interior decor options for every home.  Furniture arrangements were inspiring not the typical group after group of “sets”.  Hello, nobody with an ounce of creativity uses a set of furniture anymore.  But almost every retail furniture store in America is full of them, yawn.  Are we really that mindless?  One could furnish a whole house from this one store and have it look collected not shopped. For businesses aiming to create a unique and functional retail space, customised shopfitting solutions can make all the difference in achieving a stylish and efficient layout.

Of course there were oodles of carpets too, in every size from modern to traditional with a focus on good quality wools and contemporary designs.  FYI: lots of pretty grays, this color is going to be around for a while.

Cynical as I can be it takes a lot to impress me.  I was immediately won over by simplicity and attention to detail.  It was really a lovely store, easy to negotiate and easy to shop.  Even if you don’t live in Canada they ship all over the world.  Oh yeah, they have an outlet store too. ELTE rocks!

Do you have a favorite retailer we need to know about?

Photos via ELTE Showroom