Tucked away, a cache of high-end lookalikes

Name: Philippe Lasry, V.P. and co-founder of Kinetic, manufacturer of mid-century design classics, 1615 Louvain St. W., Suite 222, 514-383-5888, www.honzon.com. Open Fri.-Sunday, and by appointment Mon.-Thurs.

Your website says, "Kinetic came about in response to the need of bridging the gap between high-end furniture design and the mass market." Doesn't IKEA do the same thing?

We bring in much more fashionable items, mostly reproductions of high-end brands like Minotti, B&B Italia - all those Italian guys that make sofas for 20, 30 grand a piece. We reproduce them our own way and crank them out for around $3,000.

The people behind those brands, they don't care that you do that?

We're a small fly on the map for them. I guess if we started doing hundreds of billions of dollars of business a year, they'd start caring a lot.

You carry many mid-century modern classics.

Yeah, for the past three or four years, they've been really hot. The Barcelona chair, I can't keep it in stock. Last time I bought 400 and by the time they got here they were all sold.

Your customers don't mind that they're buying copies?

There are two kinds of customers. One per cent wants to buy the real thing. They want to spend the extra money. They care that it has the little tiny signature at the bottom. The other 99 per cent doesn't care or they don't have the money - or they don't even know the difference.

If you look at this Barcelona chair, there are really only two materials here: stainless steel and leather. When you're copying, there aren't many places to cut corners. We buy 302 stainless steel, which is the most expensive kind, and we buy top-brand Italian leather. It's the same two basic ingredients. It's like buying an omelet: You can pay $30 for your eggs in a restaurant or make them at home for a dollar.

You can buy organic, free-range eggs. How do you save on costs then?

Well, we don't on this chair. But on other items where the production is more complicated, we have to cut some corners.

What is the difference between a good and bad reproduction?

Bad materials, bad manufacturing, bad production techniques. I've bought this chair from other makers and it came out nice, but there was always something wrong: the cushion wasn't right; the frame was bending. In the past few years, we've been working with this one guy in China, and he's the best.

You supply to huge stores like Maison Corbeil and Zone. Why open a public showroom?

Primarily, we opened up to serve the designers and real-estate market. We would have two or three sales a year and set up the warehouse like a retail store. We sold our odds and ends, and that's how it started. People really loved to buy furniture at wholesale and discounted prices.

Hey, those are Verner Panton chairs.

Very good! I've realized that people are now becoming so educated when it comes to these products. They like coming in here and saying, "Oh, it's a Noguchi table" or "That's the Womb chair" and they like to show that they know. It's like a little fraternity of the design-savvy.

You also sell by the container. Can a normal person like me say, "I'd like a whole container of furniture."? I don't have a hotel, but I have a three-and-a-half.

If you need a whole container, of course I would do that for you. My reason for existing is to sell furniture.

Would I save a lot of money?

You'd save a ton. But you can't order one container with a million different items in it. There has to be some depth. You know, 12 of these, 10 of those.

Are personal buyers a significant part of your market?

It's growing. I think last weekend we had about 400 private shoppers come in.

So this wholesale showroom concept is working?

Definitely. You know why I think it's working? It's part of the psychology. People come into a warehouse on a backstreet where there's no obvious sign outside. The minute you walk in you feel like you've found something. Like you've discovered this little treasure chest.

How does it work with Maison Corbeil?

They buy from us and mark it up.

Wouldn't they then discourage people from coming here?

Well, a lot of the items don't overlap. They may order eight to 12 styles from us, but we have 500 styles.

What's the cheapest thing here?

The Sena lamp costs $25.

It looks like a moon. And the most expensive?

Probably this sectional (the Panamera). All five pieces together including the ottoman cost $7,999. But we do something special here; all the covers are removable. So if you buy a second cover, you almost buy a whole new sofa.

What about the recession? Are you feeling it?

We're loving it here. Regardless of the fact you're making more or less money, you're still going to need furniture. For 7,000 bucks I can furnish your whole apartment.

That chair looks so small.

It is. It's a mini-version of the Corbusier for kids. We don't sell a lot because it's almost the same price as our adult size. But we do it because it makes people smile and laugh and ask questions.

How cute. What else do you have in mini?

The Barcelona, the Panton, the Ball chair.

Imagine a mid-century modern daycare!

Well, we did supply 60 of these Lummel chairs to a library in Ontario for a kids' reading room. This product is an original exclusive for us in Canada and U.S.

They look like Lego pieces. This place is like a Toys R Us for yuppies.

I think if you're buying this kind of furniture, you want to belong to a certain group, a certain lifestyle.

Which is?

A hip, design-conscious crowd - the same people that spend $300 on jeans.

That's my next question. I read that you also own the Guido & Mary denim line (next door).

I don't, but my partner Albert does. His Guido & Mary company used to be located in another building, and when there was some space available here, I said maybe it would be good to combine the two. You should know that this space is not completely finished. The jeans will soon be exhibited in the same room, and it will be like a lifestyle showroom.

You're going to need a cappuccino bar.

We do have a cappuccino bar. And we're going to add a DJ booth. Weekends will be real events - but not like a nightclub. We are professionals.

This interview has been condensed.