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CASE STUDY: VOGEL OPTIK
Featuring a SynSisal® Medina Area Rug
PROJECT DETAILS:
CATEGORY
Retail / Professional Services Sales Floor
LOCATION
St. Moritz, Switzerland, Europe
REQUEST
Replacement for a worn-out Sisal area rug
SOLUTION
SynSisal® Medina Bark
"After a year it still looks as good as the day it was installed."-- Herr Mueller, Vogel Optik Store Manager
The Vision: Upscale Boutique Retail / Professional Services
Vogel Optik, located in the picturesque heart of St. Moritz in Switzerland, site of two Olympic Winter Games and innumerable other alpine events, invites travelers from around the world to shop the most fashionable brands of eyeglass frames available, including their own line of luxury eyewear, 1856 St. Moritz.
Their sales floor was in need of a large area rug with a warm natural tone and the ability to stand up to heavy foot traffic, as well as all of the environmental considerations that comes with operating a business in a ski town, from snowy ski boots, to salt and slush.
The Project
SynSisal®: More than Meets the Eye Doctor's Expectations
Sometimes, in the lives of business owners, a vacation can transform instantly into a working vacation. In 2022, Barbara and Jeff Curran, who own and operate Curran & sisalcarpet.com, were enjoying their traditional summer holiday in Switzerland when adventure came calling.
Barbara broke her reading glasses. They decided to bike to the nearest optician’s office in St. Moritz, a postcard-like ski town in the Alps, to get them replaced.
At Vogel Optik, they were assisted by the store manager, Urs Mueller. Jeff and Barbara immediately noticed that the large sisal area rug anchoring the granite-tiled sales floor had seen better days. Herr Mueller explained that while he loved the pleasing natural look and neutral tone of sisal, unfortunately the material just wasn’t standing up to the daily wear and tear of life in a ski town, where it was not uncommon for customers to come in from the slopes wearing their snow boots and tracking in salt. Specifically, the bindings of the rugs were wearing out after about 3 months, requiring the whole rug to be replaced.
It was for just such circumstances that the Currans developed SynSisal®, a proprietary synthetic fiber carpet that has the look and feel of sisal, but the contract-grade durability and eco-story of recycled nylon. Herr Mueller was intrigued by their suggestion to try SynSisal®, so he ordered a few samples of the available weave styles, and decided to order a custom SynSisal® area rug in Medina, Bark.
Fast forward a year later, the Currans are back on holiday and Barbara wants to get her reading glasses adjusted. They visit the store and see the SynSisal® rug looking none the worse for wear. Herr Mueller is delighted with its performance:
It’s easy to clean. He vacuums the carpet every day and it looks as good as new.
He loves the infinity edge. SynSisal® is strong enough to hold its edges without a binding (which used to be the bane of his former rugs’ existence).
He is excited to learn that he can prolong the life of his rug and avoid wear patterns by rotating his rug every so often.
All in all a very satisfied SynSisal® customer.
"After a year it still looks as good as the day it was installed."-- Herr Mueller, Vogel Optik Store Manager
Spotlight on SynSisal®: Medina Weave
Part of our exclusive SynSisal® collection, Medina has a timeless, tight loop bouclé that creates a textural, solid foundation for various design elements..
SynSisal® is Curran & sisalcarpet.com’s proprietary and unique hard-wearing synthetic sisal alternative. It is unlike any other product on the marketplace for how it looks and performs in contract and hospitality settings. While there are other products out there that look like sisal, many are unbacked polypropylene which may be easy to clean but are not durable enough to withstand heavy foot traffic.
SynSisal® has the closest look to a natural fiber sisal, with none of the drawbacks for commercial spaces. It is made from 100% ECONYL recycled nylon, reclaimed from plastic waste. It won’t stain like natural sisal, and is far easier to clean. It is certified for Class 33 - Heavy Contract Grade durability as well as rated to meet commercial building fire codes.
Lastly, SynSisal® area rugs are available with an “infinity edge” border option. The infinity edge makes a fabric border unnecessary, as the ECONYL fibers are rigid enough to form a crisp line, giving the rug a clean design-forward look.
Looking for World-Class Designer Eyewear?
Check out Vogel Optik's proprietary line of fashion eyewear, 1856 St. Moritz, on their instagram!
Seen here: Barbara Curran modeling one of their exclusive frames.
