EDITS is a new Vancouver-based online boutique brand that is on a mission to make high-end furniture designs available at mid-market prices with the launch of its first collection.
After 17 years in the design industry, EDITS founder, Richard Trory, is adopting a direct-to-consumer (DTC) approach to the high-end design-furniture market that streamlines the buying process and addresses issues of affordability and accessibility.
The first collection from the EDITS brand, Circus, reflects the collection’s embodiment of strength, balance, and choreography designed by Trory.
As a small startup competing in a high-end market space, EDITS decided to focus on starting with just a single collection of “fantastic chairs”, comprised of three related variants including the classic Circus Wood, the fully upholstered Circus Soft, and the elegant, high-backed Circus Stool.
Assembled by the craftsmen of EDITS’ main production partner in Montréal, the sustainably and economically produced collection features FSC-certified White Ash, 100 per cent recycled aluminum, and eco-friendly finishes and fabrics.
The Circus Collection is inspired by a multitude of design influences, ranging from the Bauhaus to the Bouroullecs, and fuses the rationalization and simplification of modernism with post-modernist attitudes that embrace design as a beacon of intellect and emotion.
“Overall, I really wanted to make a statement about how chairs should be made in the 21st century, with new approaches to materials and techniques,” said Trory. “Circus is a very elegant collection that is industrially, yet sustainably produced, more robust than what has come before, with references to modernist nostalgia and new-century minimalism.”
The iterative design process behind Trory’s Circus Collection extends to the careful design of its complete supply chain, ensuring a cost-effective process that ultimately benefits the buyer.
Capitalizing on the rapid rise of direct-to-consumer (DTC) online sales models that remove layers of retail overhead, EDITS is embarking on a journey to present a more affordable and easily accessible online alternative.
“The big-name design brands take an uncompromising approach to curating their collections and executing a designer’s idea, but the brand experience often gets watered down at the showroom level, and that kind of design-forward attitude is largely missing in the middle-market,” said Trory. “Manufacturing high-quality products is always an expensive process, but it’s actually the layers of distribution and sales overhead associated with traditional retail channels that pushes pricing 4-6 times above production costs.”
By combining high-tech parts manufacturing, handcrafted assembly, and global availability through a DTC platform, the EDITS approach reduces lead times and offers consumers as much as 50 per cent savings over projected costs of marketing the collection through traditional channels.
“The Internet is the great equalizer that allows small, independent companies to compete on the same footing as global giants,” said Trory. “That opens up a new avenue for small brands to do exceptional things that are more affordable and as equally visible as big brand designs.”
In addition to offering consumers access to affordably priced designer products, EDITS also wants to leverage its online model to reach a new generation of tech-savvy trade professionals looking for a streamlined specification and buying experience.
“I love the idea of a more direct approach to selling, which ultimately translates into a lower purchase price, but also a hassle-free experience,” says Richard Trory. “It seems inevitable that a portion of the design market will move in this direction, and I want to be among its new protagonists.”