Revamped INspiration puts focus on approachable chic

Rolling trays of power tools, long, heavy-duty cords and unmade beds are not what attendees will see Thursday evening when INspiration at Honolulu Design Center hosts a VIP reception to celebrate the completion of remodeling.

With 70,000 square feet of retail space, the three-floor store will reopen the morning of Aug. 31 with inventory turned upside down. Well, not literally.

Whereas the high-end furnishings previously had been on the first floor, those are now on the third floor, while the midpriced lines and office furnishings are on the second floor, and the more-approachable-to-more-people furniture and island-style selections are on the first floor.

A total of 26,000 square feet of flooring has been redone, all while the store has remained open, said owner and longtime isle businessman Thomas Sorensen.

"I can’t keep those in stock," he grinned, motioning to the UFO Round Lounge chairs on the ground floor near Stage Cafe. Families come in and the kids throw themselves on the upholstered, cushy oval, an updated version of a Papa-san chair.

Indeed, signs indicate the $1,299 chairs are out of stock, but more are on the way in a choice of red or taupe and will be promoted with a $999 price as part of a Labor Day sale, Sorensen said.

First-floor bedroom sets that include a bed frame, two nightstands and a double dresser start at about $1,000. "This one is made in Italy," he said, running his fingers across one set in black.

Near the dining room sets, Sorensen and his son mounted chairs on the wall for ease in viewing by customers and to save on floor space. The wall displays a variety of styles, hues and construction, and each chair sells for $250 or less, he said.

At the entrance to the island-themed area on the other side of the first floor is a solid bamboo shelving unit/room divider for $1,299. It’s not the old-school, lashed-together, flimsy bamboo-stalk sort of piece one might find in a tiki bar, but a substantial piece of furniture.

First-floor furnishings top out at about $3,000, while the second floor features pieces by the world’s largest sofa manufacturer, Natuzzi. Those range from $4,000 to $9,000. Office furniture fills the other side of the second floor.

Around the store, some jaw-dropping lounges and beds boast divided, cushioned backs that can move around the piece on a track hidden within the unit.

Well known as a retailer in Hawaii since the 1979 opening of Scan Design and later the opening of Scan/Line Office Interiors, one of Sorensen’s main passions is design, cultivated in part at a four-year school in Denmark where he learned design and retailing.

"This is my favorite," he said of a stylish black leather chair with a red leather headrest. "It’s very retro." At a photographer’s suggestion he sat down in it and reclined, grinning. On the third floor, the stunning black-and-red leather chair by de Sede of Switzerland is $18,699.

What appears to be an oversize lamp with a translucent shade opens to reveal a glass-top computer work station or makeup table with an identical but smaller table lamp inside.

An inch-thick round glass table with bubbles trapped inside stuns as one wonders how it even survived the shipping process — and how much it must weigh.

Huge chandeliers in traditional and decidedly nontraditional shapes and styles illuminate the upscale furniture arrangements.

The store opened in 2007, and takes quite some time to fully explore. Shopping on company time? Life doesn’t get much better than that.

For self-fortification to enable further shopping, or to quiet hungry kids, INspiration also offers on-site dining options.

Stage Cafe is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. except on holidays; Stage Restaurant serves lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and dinner from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

If you’ve wisely left the kids at home for distraction-free shopping, Amuse Wine Bar, which also serves other potables and appetizer selections, is open from 5 p.m. to closing Monday through Saturday.

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On the Net:

» www.honoluludesign-center.com

Reach Erika Engle at 529-4303, erika@staradvertiser.com, or on Twitter as @erikaengle.