From its humble beginnings as a fabric store in Ville St. Laurent back in 1989, Avenue Design has forged a reputation as an upscale furniture emporium, offering turnkey design assistance and exceptional customer service.
“We’ve been continuously evolving since we started 30 years ago, getting into window treatments, re-upholstery, and then launching our own furniture production, adding on case goods, lighting, accessories, carpeting and artwork,” says Avenue Design president Dino Bonomo. “Our collections have become more fashionable and interesting, and our product line has expanded drastically in the past two years. We have eight designers on staff with extensive furniture industry background, and we offer white glove treatment as an added value to our product line.”
The company has two warehouses close to headquarters, and is currently expanding to double the store’s square footage to 18,000 square feet. Bonomo notes that despite the trend to source and shop online, the brick-and-mortar experience remains very popular, especially with busy young professionals who don’t want to waste time when they’re ready to furnish their homes.
“People looking for high-quality products want to be served by or consult with a professional who knows their product and who’s up to date about furniture and design trends,” he explains. “Our store has experienced designers to guide you, and you’re able to see and touch the product live. We also have warehouse and delivery teams who know how to handle high-end furniture. That has a value that can’t be reproduced online, and this is part of the reason we’re going through the expansion.”
While Avenue Design stays on top of current design trends, it also produces classic, contemporary pieces in neutral palettes that don’t go out of style. “It’s a young, fresh look; we call it liveable luxury – products that look good and wear well, so you can keep your base decor in place and just change up pillows, carpets or artwork,” Bonomo says.
“We provide a lot of bang for the buck. We have price guarantees on anything that competes with other stores, but half our collection is custom-made products.”
With more people perusing Pinterest and Instagram, Bonomo says, his team is seeing more clients having already done extensive research. “The clientele is more fun to work with, because there’s an interaction with our designers; we’re not imposing ideas on them,” he says. “We’ll work up floor plans and colour palettes together; we’re really having a good time.”
After-sales service also ensures Avenue Design clients return, he adds, because they know they’ll be well taken care of.
“We stand behind our product, but we also have the workrooms and teams in place to resolve the problems if they do come up,” Bonomo says. “That’s been a big factor in our growth over the past few years. We consider furniture an investment, and people’s homes their reward for a fast-paced life. They come home at night, enter a room that we did, and feel terrific. And that’s our goal.” •
Avenue Design
www.avenuedesigncanada.com
514- 340-9351
Originally posted in the Montreal Winter 2019 issue.
