Arrin K. Williams
Chicago USA
arrinkw@gmail.com
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I am a storyteller and a storyseller;
an image-shaper and a brand-builder;
an appraiser and a curator;
a merchant and a maker;
a strategist and an entrepreneur.
And I partner with retailers, marketplaces, consumer brands and services, artists, designers, dealers, and collectors. ——— Boutique to bigbox, value to luxury, startup to legacy, bricks to clicks. ——— Fashion to furniture, sports to the arts, artisan to mass, vintage to modern.
Shaping strategies and narratives, refining identity and aesthetics, promoting products and experiences. ——— All while balancing historical reverence, perpetual change, and the diverse nuances of the customer journey.
In the end, what I’m really doing is connecting dots. ——— Material culture, design trends, consumer behavior, social identity. ——— What do our commercial choices, brand affiliations, marketing influences, and creative expressions say about us as individuals and our tribes?
The shoes we put on; the packaging of our skin care; the style of hotel we stay at; the photos we post; the team we root for; the layout and sounds of the boutique we shop at; the objects we collect; the chair we sit on.
Everything communicates something, and all parts are connected. This is the vernacular I live and breathe. And this is the fluid dynamic that I observe, interpret, and reinterpret. ——— Crafting stories, tastes, and behaviors. And influencing the evolution of brands, design, and commerce.
Say hello, let’s talk shop.
Or, at the very least, let’s chat about that chair you sit on.
~ Arrin
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Steward | Chartwells Higher Ed
Jaybird Auctions | Showdrop
RahRah | Parker-Lambert Agency
CB2 | ShopRunner | HereHere Market
CoinOp Amusements | Prime Eight Art League
Everything But The House | Sotheby’s Home
Holly Hunt | Alice + Olivia | Rent the Runway
The Haymaker Shop | Son + Heir Apparel
LumiSource | Sears + Kmart | Frank Lloyd Wright Trust
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The University of Michigan
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Press + Accolades:
Wallpaper
Details
ESPN
Time Out
Huffington Post
Chicago Home & Garden
Tasting Table
Apartment Therapy
Visual Supply Co.
Design Sponge
CondeNast Traveler
Crain's Chicago Business
Refinery29
WCIU Morning Show
CBS Morning Show
Martha Stewart Living
Daily Candy
Remodelista
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A few anecdotes:
I was that geeky kid who, every April through September morning, thoroughly scanned all the newspaper baseball box scores. Memorize the stats, see who was playing unexpectedly well, then buy their cards on the cheap to resell to the same dealer for a profit a few months later.
Then I was that aesthetically-anxious kid who, every couple of weeks, fastidiously rearranged his wacky collection of arty magazine ads, kitsch ephemera, and brooding music posters.
And then I was that one jerk thrifting all the Eames chairs and vintage Levi's before you. Hey… I had some tuition that needed paying. And you needed to shop faster.
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A few more anecdotes:
I have been a Chicagoan since 2000; was born in San Antonio, TX; have spent time (among other places) in Hudson Valley, NY and Ann Arbor, MI.
I have road-tripped through 46 of the 48 continental states.
I am fond of day baseball, dusty flea markets, post-disco synthpop, flower gardening, object rearrangement for sport, and Wheaten Terriers.
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Currently into: Chvrches + Robert Smith - How Not to Drown
Still into: Clairo - Sofia
Still+: Violents + Monica Martin - How It Left
Still++: Jamie xx, feat. Romy - Loud Places
Forever: Saint Etienne - Only Love Can Break Your Heart
Forever++: New Order - Leave Me Alone
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Arrin K. Williams
Chicago USA
arrinkw@gmail.com