PIRCH Dallas Preview in Dallas Modern Luxury Magazine

DESIGN DESTINATION
When California-based PIRCH opens its door in NorthPark Center in August, the kitchen and bath emporium promises to hook shoppers with its try-me-out-first philosophy.

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By Ellise Pierce for Dallas Modern Luxury

At 10:30 on a Sunday morning, one of four on-staff chefs pulls a tray of homemade cinnamon rolls out of a Thermador Grand Pro steam oven—best for bakers because it keeps bread’s tender inside moist—and a barista steams milk for cappuccinos from the Ferrari of espresso machines (a gleaming red La Marzoco FB/80) and gives the cappuccinos to customers seated at the bar. The coffee and pastries are gratis. The appliances that make them—in this case, more than a dozen high-end ovens and ranges from France’s La Cornue to the British AGA—are all for sale. It’s all part of the try-before-you-buy philosophy at PIRCH (NorthPark Center, 8687 N. Central Expressway, Suite 2172, 469.250.9750, pirch.com), which opens its first Texas showroom and retail store in Dallas in late August—the company’s fifth in five years—and will stock some of the most coveted brands in home appliances and plumbing fixtures, such as Miele, Sub Zero/Wolf, Bertazzoni and La Cornue. New for the company, and to be launched in Dallas, is a line of bath fixtures created by the esteemed Italian industrial designer Prospero Rasulo for Gessi.

The idea, says CEO Jeffery Sears, who started the company out of frustration when he couldn’t find what he was looking for in one location during his own home remodel, is to offer homeowners, designers, architects and builders access to the world’s most prestigious brands, and to make the shopping experience just that—an experience in itself. “Customers come in, and they dream,” he says. “Until you know what’s possible, you don’t know what you want.”

Exactly. How could you possibly know if you prefer the “full drenching rain” of 228 water jets embedded in a cylindrical light fixture, or would rather do Pharrel Williams’ “Happy” dance while you suds up in a water-conserving spray with 60 angled nozzles surrounding a wireless speaker? Just book an hour in the Sanctuary and try them out, more than three dozen in all.

As the day wanes, back at Bliss café, a chef demonstrates how to make “man candy,” baked bacon with cinnamon and brown sugar, while another shows how to scramble eggs on EVO’s Mongolian-style flattop grill in the Patio, the space in the middle of the store designed to look like the outdoors, complete with an ivy-covered wall.

“We produce beautifully designed experiences with great products,” says Sears. “You could call up any store and say, ‘I’m having a dinner party on Saturday and I want to serve shrimp risotto but can’t get it right.’ Come in, and in 20 minutes, one of our chefs will give you a lesson, and it’s free.” How’s that for hospitality?