What a year! In every way!
In January, after 22 years in Greenwich Village, I closed our bricks-and-mortar location. I miss The Village dearly. Even more, I miss those loyal customers who supported LEO Design throughout the years—many of whom have become my friends. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
After finding a wonderful 1906 Arts & Crafts home in Pittsburgh, we sold our Chelsea apartment and made the 400 mile move to Western Pennsylvania—one 16 foot truckload at a time! We alighted in a leafy Oakland neighborhood, two blocks from the University of Pittsburgh. In some ways, our neighborhood has the (diluted) feel of the area surrounding NYU—a tidal pool of bustling student life which rises and falls with the seasons. Pittsburgh has the feeling of a city in mid-Renaissance. Companies find it an affordable—yet culturally rich—place to locate their workplaces and their people. Education and medicine are key "industries" here, sectors which attract many smart, interesting and motivated people. And most of the remnants of The Gilded Age—libraries, museums and gardens endowed by people named Carnegie, Forbes and Frick—are still well-tended and thriving. True, there's only one New York—but Pittsburgh is another good place to live.
In the past few months, I have kept busy unpacking (my business and our home), traveling on buying trips (for the website), and taking care of the "behind-the-scenes" legalities which accompany a business move across state lines. I have started a Facebook page—for the business—which can be found at "LEO Design - Handsome Gifts." And I have been keeping active on our Instagram account, found at "leodesignhandsomegifts."
Here are a few developments to expect in 2018:
- a new and improved website—with larger pictures and more ways to get in-touch with us;
- a (small) installation at the handsome Antique Center of Stabane in Canonsburg (outside of Pittsburgh); and
- the completion of a modest showroom in the (former) Servants' Hall in the basement of our house (available by appointment).
Wishing you a Happy New Year and a 2018 that makes your dreams come true.
All the best,
Kimo Jung
LEO Design's Greenwich Village store is now permanently closed. While we contemplate our next shop location, please visit our on-line store which continues to operate (www.LEOdesignNYC.com).
Follow us on Instagram: "leodesignhandsomegifts"
Follow us on Facebook: "LEO Design - Handsome Gifts"