Steven GILES, BIO

 

Founder, Creative Director, BASE USA INC, and BASE PROJECT LLC.,

December 1989 - present

and a self-described 'hunter-gatherer,' retail guru Steven Giles, has made a life's work from observing and artfully editing prevailing culture in an ongoing effort to offer the new, the unseen, and even the familiar in new and updated terms. 

Credited with being one of the early forerunners of what has become known as 'lifestyle' retailing, his vision embraces a highly curated, story-driven driven exchange that blurs the boundaries between art and commerce.

He is keenly aware and engaged by the various components of retailing - particularly within unexpected and 'niche' settings - which he believes offer considerable, often untapped opportunities for revenue generation.

For Steven, retail is a credible conversation on an expanded scale, one where tangible sensory experiences trade in not only salable commodities but perhaps more critically, the subtle, enduring marketing of stories and memories.

The company's flagship store, BASE SUPERSTORE, flourished on Lincoln Road, South Beach, for over twenty years and is currently located in Miami's eclectic Wynwood Arts District. Recognized as a pioneer in every sense and considered something of a local institution, BASE was an early forerunner, forming alliances with some of the world's leading brands, and fostering and incubating emergent talent.

Hailing from London but equally at home in New York, LA, and Miami, Steven has been involved in all aspects of design, branding, and retail for the past three decades, creating diverse store concepts in all three cities. The recipient of numerous awards and press accolades (Wallpaper, The Financial Times, The New York Times, GQ, Travel and Leisure and Ocean Drive to name but a few), most notably for his creative work with BASE - itself an award-winning retail concept - but in recent years for his active consulting company BASE PROJECT LLC.

At the request of Ian Schrager and Morgans Hotel Group, Steven, created the company's first hotel store at the notable DELANO, South Beach, over eight years ago. It has continued to thrive through diverse business climates, consistently generating sales over $ 2,000's per square foot.

Continuing to expand on his work within the hospitality industry, Steven has developed many highly functional components, including revisiting a life-size vending machine for Morgans Hotel Group, which saw a 7,000% increase in returns during it's the first month of operations. He also created an innovative approach to traditional in-room minibars, a 'Shop Box' designed and curated to cater to the carefully considered needs of guests, and even to surprise with unique and unusual items and 'finds' all of which delivered excellent returns for the hotel. 

Based on the success of the DELANO store, BASE was invited by ISC (Ian Schrager Company) and the then newly minted EDITION brand to create the company store for their first venture in Waikiki and to advise on and develop in-room branded products, including a highly regarded compilation music CD. While operational, the EDITION store at The Waikiki EDITION enjoyed sales comparable with those of DELANO hotel with gross margins in the 65% percentile.

Since then BASE PROJECT has developed LIMITED EDITION, a fully-fledged and highly successful store for the Miami EDITION, and has oversight on all future retail projects for the EDITION brand. LIMITED EDITION quadrupled sales projections for the first year of operations.

The company's accomplishments have included creating purpose-built stores, content, branded compilation music albums, custom scents, in-room amenities, and minibars for groups such as EDITION, The Morgans Hotel Group, and TRADE at Public Hotels, NY, the General Store, Fire Island Pines, NY.

Current clients include A/D/O, MoMA New York, EDITION HOTELS, Fire Island Pines Hotel LLC. 

Portfolio: www.BASE-PROJECT.com

For further information on BASE and BASE PROJECT, please contact Steven Giles directly at steven@BASE-PROJECT.com