24 ELLE DECORSHOP TALK
BY CHARLES CURKINMasters
of Light
and Dark
WITH DESIGNER
COLLABORATIONS
FROM AERIN LAUDER
TO ALEXA HAMPTON,
THE SHADE STORE
IS BRINGING A-LIST
STYLE TO WINDOW
TREATMENTS.
The Shade Store
founders (from
left) Zach Gibbs,
Greg Spatz,
Adam Gibbs,
and Ian Gibbs.W
HEN IT COMES TO FINDING BESPOKE
window treatments for her high-end cli-
entele, A-List decorator Alexa Hampton
is turning to a surprisingly affordable
and efficient source: The Shade Store.
“To be able to order something and get it just 10 days later is
unheard of in this industry,” says Hampton, who jokes that
her grocery deliveries “take more time than that.” In fact,
she’s such a fan that earlier this year she debuted her first
collection of fabrics for the brand. Her whimsical designs,
ranging from Greco-Roman to Wiener Werkstätte–esque
patterns (in colors like Bonsai and Silver Spoon) join oth-
ers by the likes of Nate Berkus and Aerin Lauder, who also
recently launched collections for The Shade Store. It’s all
part of the evolution of this family-owned firm based in
Westchester County, New York.The Shade Store’s origins go back to 1946, when Milton
Goldstein founded a textiles shop in Mount Vernon, New
York. As soon as his grandsons Zach, Adam, and Ian Gibbs
and Greg Spatz could walk and carry a broom, they were
helping out in the family business. “We were being groomed
from birth,” says Zach, whose father took over what his
father-in-law, Milton, had started.
After college, in 2006, the Gibbs brothers and Spatz
launched The Shade Store, focusing on made-to-order win-
dow treatments, including blinds, shades, and curtains. The
firm has since expanded into an empire encompassing a web-
site and 70 brick-and-mortar locations in the United States,
where customers can choose from a selection of more than
1,300 materials. The shops offer consultations—bring in pho-
tos of your windows, and an employee can walk you through
the options, from blackout roller shades and light-filtering
cellular shades to designer wood blinds and ripple-fold cur-
tains. Once you’ve made your choice, The Shade Store will
measure on-site, then return in just over a week to install the
window treatments.
This year’s collaborations, which join ongoing relation-
ships with Chilewich and Ralph Lauren, add a new layer of
style to The Shade Store’s selection. Berkus’s fabrics include
chic stripe and palm motifs, while Lauder’s patterns range
from romantic florals to paisleys in pastel hues. But while
the designs are fashion-forward, the firm’s strategy is never
about trends. “We want staying power,” notes Zach, the
company’s general manager.
What really sets The Shade Store apart is an almost obses-
sive attention to service, a principle instilled in the Gibbs
brothers and Spatz as children. “My grandfather, followed
by my father, built a monster business based on attention to
their customers’ needs,” Zach says. “Two generations later,
that is still our bread and butter.” theshadestore.com ◾A Roman shade
in a new floral
fabric by Aerin
Lauder for
The Shade
Store. LEFT:
Roller-shade
patterns by
Alexa Hampton
in (from left)
Burst, Zambia,
and Morse.