The Business of Design: A Global Reality
We’ve often talked about the importance of travel and design intersecting, because as designers we rely on global inspiration, partnerships and associations. Global partnerships are a good thing, since the dawn of the internet, design has enjoyed a borderless collective pot of influence, sharing and innovation. Design without borders is the sum of all creative powers, globally, making and sparking creative craft throughout the world. Rich and diverse spaces reflect the world we live in. Globally, design has become vibrant, eclectic and accessible to all. With everything tariffs on the horizon, we can’t help but talk about what that means for design, us as designers and especially for you as our design clients.
Products and components ship from a global landscape to make up our furniture, lighting, fabrics and diverse ingredients required for even things like paint and wallpaper.
Let’s Talk Tariffs
Where do tariffs fit into the vast world of retail design, spanning furniture, textiles and accents? Many components of the products we purchase related to design, are shipped from all over the world. There is only so much shuffling of supply chains that can be done and smaller retail brands will not have the negotiating power that we see with corporate giants. Furthermore, a product may be assembled in Canada but the elements such as fabric, springs etc. may be from abroad. Specific items are so rooted in global sourcing that it’s extremely difficult to find alternative options. As well, labour skill sets need to be taken into account, not all types of labour force can be found locally. To make the shift to try and avoid tariffs, things like relocation costs and raw material cost may increase as a result. Throw in the confusion and overall complexity of the entire topic, it only adds to the difficult time this has all created.
The good thing is, that post pandemic our world seems more resilient to the new challenges our importing and exporting networks face.
Living In The Moment
As experienced designers, we focus on the project in front of us. We have always had a Canada first focus and we will re-tool where we need to. Investing domestically is something we will continue to advocate for and our creativity is always our beacon. Finding new resources, creative solutions and contingency plans have served us well in the past. Just as our design approach for how we work with you is unique, we will fight to ensure we deliver our clients distinct and exceptional products. Our service will always be the Tim + Chris constant, through collaborative and collective relationships we expect to support Canadian made in more ways than ever.
Our gallery features Canadian art and pictured above our handmade ceramic Iris dish collection by Quebec brand Fabrica Ateleia.
At Room by Tim + Chris we focus on Canadian first.
A Call To Action
In order to continue our ambitious goals as Canadians, an innovation and productivity gap needs to be addressed. Organizations and entrepreneurs need support more than ever, to innovate and grow and to be able to create good jobs for Canadians. A combination of government support and policies that encourage trade, investment, and innovation is needed to support local manufacturing firms as they adopt new processes and develop made-in-Canada products.
Now is the time for our politicians to support industry, through access to manufacturing funds, technologies, partnerships and, innovation. As Canadians, we want the ability to build here, we need new factories in order to increase capacity for small and medium enterprise. We have supported and promoted an artisan approach and there is opportunity now for an investment mindset to revitalize and boost Canadian efficiency. We can see opportunity clearly, for the furniture production and manufacturing space as retail owners, and it’s time for a fundamental shift in how manufacturing approaches productivity here in Canada. (Supply Professional)
Monte has always been proudly Canadian, with all furniture manufactured in Toronto. Craftsmanship and quality go into every Monte piece. Monte Design.
Our Home And Native Land
A Canadian brand will always be our first choice. But it is not always viable for a host of design reasons. Such decisions have ramifications for budgets, access to components that make up the greater product, or in some cases, a product may simply not be available in Canada. Just as our global economy grew and it opened up export opportunities, it also opened us up to our current situation. As much as design has done for us, as it relates to form and function, we are limited now by how the design business is truly based on global supply chains. It’s time for our national pride and sentiment to support where we can, we cannot reiterate enough, that Canadian will always be our first choice. The Canadian identity is having a resurgence, and for that we won’t be saying “sorry.”
