Minted Opens San Francisco Pop-Up With Packed Party

Christy Turlington Burns, Vanessa Getty, Mariam Naficy

Photo Credit: Drew Altizer

A select group of San Franciscans gathered to celebrate the opening of Minted Local. The first brick-and-mortar location of Minted, an online global marketplace that sells stylish stationery, pretty home linens, and unique artwork from independent artists, was packed with creative types eager to get a glimpse of the chic shop. Minted’s founder and CEO, Mariam Naficy, was incredibly excited about the opportunity to improve the interaction between the consumer and artist. “We’re going to offer artist workshops, like tie dying classes and wood block printing,” she said. “We want to foster a creative relationship between the consumer and the art. Our crowdsourcing process allows us to surface the best, freshest, and most unique art and design in the world. Now, we bring our consumers closer to these works and the process of creating them with quality.”

Photo Credit: Drew AltizerNaficy co-hosted the party with model-turned-mother-activist, Christy Turlington Burns, and local philanthropist Vanessa Getty. During the pop-up’s first week, 50 percent of all sales will be donated to Every Mother Counts, Turlington Burns’s non-profit that is dedicated to making pregnancy and childbirth safer in developing and third world countries. Other VIP guests in attendance included a handful of startup CEOs, Jeremy Stoppelman of Yelp, Nirav Tolia of Nextdoor, Lynn Jurich of Sunrun and Brad Murray of Tatcha. Leigh Matthes, Allison Spear, and Zem Joaquin also took part in the festivities. Party goers were invited to shop the pillows, prints, and papers while sipping cool glasses of Chardonnay and snacking on nibbles like mini beef Wellington, seared chicken in tiny lettuce cups, smoked salmon crepes, vegetarian sushi and chocolate mousse.

Photo Credit: Drew Altizer

For many of the flower-loving guests, the highlight of the evening was the ‘make your own bouquet’ station. Beautiful pink-and-yellow peonies, peaches-and-cream dahlias, and blush parrot tulips were elegantly displayed. Each guest was able to make their own blooming bouquet and take it home at the end of the night. An apron-clad font specialist manned the massive hand-operated letterpress that is a part of the window installation. Shoppers can learn about the centuries-old printing process and make a custom print with their name on it using the press. Minted Local also has a Stylist Bar where customers can make an appointment with a design expert to learn how to put together a gallery wall, craft their dream wedding and collaborate with artists to create high-quality one-of-a-kind home goods. An all white and airy space with swirling quotes about art and creativity sprinkled throughout, the store was designed by Naficy and Kendall Ermshar. The Minted Local Pop-Up at 222 Grant Avenue will be open through October 2016.