Haworth, Interphase to open creative design showroom in Grand Rapids' new MoDiv retail incubator

Haworth and its Grand Rapids dealer, Interphase Interiors, announced plans this week to open an 1,800-square-foot showroom and retail store in the new Shops at Monroe Center and Division, or MoDiv, in downtown Grand Rapids.

MoDiv, a new retail incubator endeavor launched by Rockford Construction, will make some 8,500 square feet of the Peck Building on the corner of Monroe Center and N. Division Avenue available for businesses wanting to get a toe in downtown's retail waters. The Haworth/Interphase showroom and 6.25 Paper Studio (formerly Syd Design) are the first tenants.

"The space will be a working showroom and a retail space for us," says Ray Kennedy, Haworth's director of North American marketing. "It will be a space to bring customers to experience our Haworth products, and it will be available to other tenants and the community if someone needs a large space for events."

Haworth products are custom designed, Kennedy says, so most retail shopping will be via special orders. But he says "there may be some pieces they can walk out the door with."

The showroom will have kitchen, living room, library, foyer and office areas that will demonstrate how workspaces have taken on a casual feel akin to a home environment.

Moreover, Haworth envisions the space as a launching pad for innovative ideas on the changes in workplace environments.

"It's going to be a great place to bring the community together, and a great place to test products out," Kennedy says. "It will be great to have the connection with the incubator space and the retail outlets that are there. There will be lots of opportunities to co-market and coexist, and they'll have access to our space so they can use it and build up that corner of downtown Grand Rapids."

Rockford Construction says it will invest some $400,000 in the incubator.

Source: Ray Kennedy, Haworth; Michael Zalewski, SeyferthPR
Writer: Deborah Johnson Wood, Development News Editor

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