But this time, I’m doing something a little different.

I’ve decided to look back and reminisce on the NewWall journey, to put aside hopes and dreams for the coming months, and instead celebrate where we started and how far we’ve all come.

How it all started

The thing I love about NewWall’s origin story, is how it perfectly sums up me and NewWall.

So, let’s cast ourselves back to 2009 (13 years, wow). I was a fashion distributor, just back in Canada after a wonderful year in Florence. Determined to share the “made in Italy” ethos with the World, I attended countless global design trade shows to figure out where to start – and I found it. A beautiful stall dedicated to wall coverings.

Being the entrepreneurial woman I am, I dived into research, then arranged a meeting with a representative from this company…or so I thought.

What I didn’t know, is that this meeting was with the owner of one of Europe’s most important wallcovering production companies! Our shared passion for Italian interior design sparked a two-hour-long discussion. This ended with me, a relatively inexperienced wallcovering admirer, being granted exclusive rights to distribute two exciting new brands for both Canada and USA: J&V Italian Design and Marimekko wallcoverings.

And just like that, with a simple mission, big passion and a little luck, NewWall was born.

The early years

What started with a spark turned into hard craft – and looking back – I can say I loved every moment. A two-person operation working out of a cramped back office wasn’t easy, but it was there that NewWall’s strong foundations were built. In 7 short years, we grew our two-brand offering into a global cornucopia of incredible design houses. Including:

• Tres Tintas Barcelona (Spain)
• J&V Italian Design (Italy)
• Marimekko (Italy)
• Abnormals Anonymous (USA)
• 17 Patterns (UK)
• Coordonné (Spain)
• Fausel, Biskamp (Germany)
• Artmura (Italy)
• Timorous Beasties (Glasgow)

….and more!

It was, and still is our mission to be at the forefront of global wall-covering trends.

What happened next

We began sourcing for a huge array of clients, from global hotel chains to first time buyers. And we weren’t going to stop there. It was time to expand our services. We were already offering white glove service to both the business trade and retail clients, and we decided it was time to launch online too. (A decision that again, was sprinkled with luck – as we all know what Covid-19 brought!)

Since then, we and our showcased brands have been featured in Elle Décor, House Beautiful, Interiors, LUXE, Better, Homes & Garden…the list goes on.

We continued to grow both digitally and in person. And 6 years ago, we launched our largest downtown Toronto showroom, NewWall House. Our headquarters and test lab, NewWall House was and still is, dedicated to the future of design and wallcoverings.

To sum up

Throughout all the growth, twists and turns, one thing has remained constant – our commitment to discovering and nurturing exclusive, innovative and unexpected products that delight our loyal clientele. And you know what? That’s my goal for 2023, too.

I hope you enjoyed this glimpse into the history of NewWall.