If you’re walking along Oxford Street, Paddington, it’s impossible not to stop at the eye-catching apple green exterior of the OPUS Design Co. The beautifully styled store front windows are brimming with great design pieces that offer a teaser to what’s inside.

When you walk inside you are immediately enveloped by the kaleidoscope of colour and design. The OPUS Design Co. store has the best edit of international brands including New York designer Jonathan Adler, Orla Kiely ceramics and cushions by Florence Broadhurst.

It’s obvious that the OPUS style direction is a well oiled machine, after over 40 years in retail, the store offers the customer  cleverly edited international design products, contemporary & classic furniture and homewares, including children’s toys and pet accessories.

OPUS Design Co. is all about celebrating design and style, quirkiness and fun while keeping accessibility in mind.

The team at a la mode sydney are thrilled to have the opportunity to talk to OPUS Design Co. Director Chris Tourgelis, an iconic Sydney retailer, to tell us about what makes his world go around.

THE INTERVIEW

a la mode sydney :
Let’s say we like your style OPUS Design Co.! Chris obviously, you’re doing something right after clocking up an amazing 44 years in retail with OPUS and, recently opening OPUS Design Co. on Oxford Street. Is there any chance you would tell us the secret to a successful retail business?

OPUS DESIGN CO.:

Yes, my pleasure! I think the success of OPUS has to do with a family that is passionate about the business. We have a genuine enthusiasm and love for our work and for our customers. This rubs off on everything we do. I think this also inspires the customer who walks into the door, they can feel the love that we have for our business.  We work side by side with our staff & face to face with our customers and this translates into the personalisation that people want. We also have a way of not only understanding the trends but also setting them as well!

A LA MODE SYDNEY:

Is it true that OPUS Design Co. at 354 Oxford Street Paddington, which opened in October 2012, is inspired by the fabulous, colour crazed design guru Jonathan Adler from New York? Please tell us why?

OPUS DESIGN CO.:

Yes. I visited San Francisco in 2012 for a trade show. On one of my days off  I came across the Jonathan Adler store and I was really blown away by the colour and the strength of the concept. The store had children’s products, furniture, home accessories and many other elements all working together so brilliantly. It was such an incredible concept done so bravely & creatively. I hadn’t seen anything like that in Australia. I wanted to bring the OPUS spirit into the furniture and home décor arena in Australia with a similar style and similar intensity. Jonathan Adler was the catalyst for opening OPUS Design Co. – it inspired me to create a concept that is brave and exciting.

A LA MODE SYDNEY:

It’s clear that OPUS has an extremely well honed design eye, offering an irresistible, hand-picked selection of design products that appeal to a many customers, from design aficionados through to passionate pet owners. How do you decide on what your customer wants?

OPUS DESIGN CO.:

The whole process of choosing products for the new store is very interesting to me. The selection comes together in a very organic way. We attend trade shows, we hunt for products that we have seen overseas, and many times people approach us to stock their brands. In order for a product to make it on to our shelves it has to be oozing with personality and have a certain X factor. When I see a product for the first time it has to talk to me and invite me in somehow. I want to be excited by it and this way it will also be exciting for our discerning customers.

A LA MODE SYDNEY:

The product range at OPUS Design Co. is huge. Could you please tell us what products are stocked at OPUS Design Co.?

OPUS DESIGN CO.:

We stock Jonathan Adler design, MoMa (Museum of Modern Art) and Dwell Studios soft furnishings, and these brands are all from New York. We also stock Orla Kiely ceramics and cushions by Florence Broadhurst, Voluspa candles and the Elk leather range. You will also find Orson & Blake furniture and accessories and we have our own OPUS Design Co frames (by Corban & Blair). We stock the Seletti brand from Italy and the Iittala brand from Finland. We also have a range of soft toys by U.K designer Donna Wilson and a selection of Apple Park organic baby products that we import from the US. This is just a small sample of the dozens of great brands that we are ranging right now!

A LA MODE SYDNEY:  

Word on the street is that you’re known as the “Gift Guru’s”. How did this evolve?

OPUS DESIGN CO.:

My family has been in the gift industry for the best part of 45 years. It’s a way of life for us and it is an important part of my life. I have been in the business on a day to day level for 15 years and over this time I have built up a reputation in the industry as a gift specialist. The Gift Guru tag has just evolved from this I guess and I really don’t mind it at all!