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CAN Event Recap: Soiree at the Well | The Future of Retail Spaces

Updated: Jan 24



Our very first Student Design Competition was a HUGE SUCCESS!


On February 15, 2023, we enjoyed an evening of networking and celebration as we raised a glass with colleagues and peers to recognize top Canadian student retail design talent and the top three winners of the 2022/23 Student Design Competition | The Future of Retail Spaces.


The competition was open to students from across Canada in their final year of architecture, experiential design, graphic design, gaming design, industrial design, interactive design, interior design, and visual merchandising programs. Students were invited to craft a two-minute video narrative showcasing their creative retail design strategies from projects during their academic careers.

The Jury

  • Was comprised of esteemed creatives from the retail design field from across the country:

  • Paola Marques, Head of North America at Benoy / GH+A, Montreal

  • Marcella Au, Associate, Retail + Interiors Lead, BDP Quadrangle North America, Toronto

  • Nick Iozzo, President + Founder at the Ancillary Agency, Toronto

  • Emily Robin Sauer, Principal + Designer | Innovation + Strategy + Interiors, Emily Robin Design, Vancouver

  • The jury critiqued the videos on four elements: Creative Approach to the Video, Innovation in the Retail Design concepts, Originality & Brand Continuity

Sponsors & Partners

  • Event Sponsors: BDP Quadrangle, Biyork Floors and PIDDI Design.

  • Student Design Completion Sponsors: Benjamin Moore, Visual Citi, Division Twelve and Sherwin Williams.

  • Strategic Partner: Interior Designers of Canada,

  • Media Partners: VMSD magazine and Retail TouchPoints.

First Place Winner

  • $3000 cash prize awarded to Melaina Santilli, Honours Bachelor of Interior Design student, Sheridan College, Mississauga, Ont.

  • Feedback from the jury:

    • ‘A prolific video that was comprehensive and integrated hand sketches to show the evolution of the process. A powerful and confident submission.’

    • ‘Melaina’s submission is confident, comprehensive, and prolific.’

    • ‘I loved Melaina’s breakdown of the process and symbolism and continuity of the flower opening and closing. This was clever to help viewers flow through the presentation.’


Second Place Winner

  • $2000 cash prize awarded to SJ Al Hmaidi, Honours Bachelor of Interior Design, Fanshawe College, London, Ont.

  • Feedback from the jury:

    • ‘A creative approach, forward-thinking and future-focused, overall, the video conveyed a consistent design story.’

    • ‘SJ created a video narrative that not only had captivating and appropriate content, he pushed himself to do something different.’


Third Place Winner

  • $1000 cash prize awarded to Katelyn Montgomery, Honours Bachelor of Interior Design, Fanshawe College, London, Ont.

  • Feedback from the jury:

    • ‘Katelyn conveyed a compelling expression of her own point of view, her video crafted a strong case for why retail design needs to change and must be prioritized by the design solution.’

    • ‘Katelyn’s video conveyed a strong presentation and had a point of view – retail is alive! Great evidence of taking an intellectual approach to the video that demonstrates her pivot in thinking.’


Event Gallery:

Pssst…. You don’t want to miss our next event! Stay tuned 😉


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