WORD ON THE STREET
by Holiday Dmitri
The Booster - Wicker Park
August 21, 2002

Orange Appeal: Form Meets Function at this Wicker Park Shop By Holiday Dmitri

Not too long ago, I mentioned architect Obi Nwazota in a column I wrote on Square One's co-heads Eric Williams and Jeanette Fernandez.

This week, the spotlight shines on him and his partner Giuseppe Cerasoli, as they celebrate the one-year anniversary of their high-quality modern design store Orange Skin at 1429 N. Milwaukee in Wicker Park.

Their ardent belief that contemporary styles can succeed in a city historically known for its traditional attitude has paid off.

Chicago might be the store's location, but the firm is set against an international backdrop. Italian-born Cerasoli and Nigeria-born Nwazota fly abroad treasure-hunting for fun and functional furniture, interiors and gift products.

"We travel a lot and bring all these things from around the world to where we consider home," Cerasoli, 45, says. "Many people get confused. They ask where our New York store is, as if a store like this can't be based here. Our challenge was to prove that modern design can be appreciated by the Midwestern mentality."

Friends for nearly a decade, Nwazota and Cerasoli, who both hold architecture degrees, share similar philosophies when it comes to what looks good and works well, and handle their architecture contracts and product design deals under the Orange Skin belt.

The title "Orange Skin," named after the store's pet goldfish (whom Nwazota and Cerasoli lightheartedly call their boss), never garnered much meaning.

"The name is our style," Nwazota, 34, explains, "which over the years will define what it is that we are about."

The two have always approached design from a very wide perspective. Nwazota, who also owns funky fashion boutiques E-Octopussy, Softcore and Hidden Junk with business partner Suen Lam, tells it like this: "Everything that we do, from fashion, architecture to furniture, for us is one and the same family."

And despite Wicker Park's steady gentrification, it is still "an authentic neighborhood" they say. Both live in the neighborhood.

"We picked the location, because it's a more original point of view of Chicago than you can find downtown," Cerasoli tells me.

"Which allows us to take risks that we normally can't take in a homogenous setting," Nwazota adds. "Here you expect to be surprised, so what we give them is not weird anymore."

Orange Skin, says Nwazota, features goods for "a different mentality." Approximately 5,000 square feet of minimalist interior, their store is a cross-fertilization of global design from Kartell's high-quality plastic furniture to name-brand product designers like Marc Newson, Phillippe Starck, Ron Arad and Stephano Giovannoni.

Most of the furniture is imported from Italy, though their stock includes pieces from all over the world, like France, Germany, Denmark, Thailand, Canada and the States. Nwazota and Cerasoli also custom-build for clients.

"All the items share the same philosophy," Cerasoli explains. "This is all about our concept in design that designers should be accessible, fun and change your life in some degree. It's not about just selling something. We want to show a different way of doing the same thing you do everyday ­ but with a different perspective. It's about adding value to the every day objects."

"Our idea sets us apart," he continues. "We are not afraid to show plastic furniture or colorful pieces. We are not limited. We don't come from a retail perspective. What we do here is almost an education. We allow each person to play with these things for the first time"

Rather than head to the museum, several art school teachers bring their students on field trips to this Wicker Park store. Both Orange Skin owners have done lectures, and their company features internships for university art students.

"It's almost become a sort of amusement park," Nwazota says. "Everyone wants to touch."

Prices range from $2 to $10,000. The imported furniture, Cerasoli admits, is rather hefty, but worth the pricetag price for the quality material and design -- which is evident in their number of sales. Business is booming and plans are getting bigger.

This fall, they are launching an e-commerce website. And next year, they plan to address issues for the contract market, giving architects and interior designers better access to Orange Skin's unique pieces for commercial spaces.

Says Nwazota, " There's not enough of us to serve the city. We seek competition. Not only is it healthy, but we're actually malnourished when it comes to stuff like this in Chicago."

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