David Kepron

It’s a question that all kids must answer at least once in their lives: What do you want to be when you grow up? At age 45, David Kepron, principal at the Philadelphia-based architecture firm, spg3, is still considering his options.

Kepron earned architecture degrees from McGill University in Montreal and is an active member of the American Institute of Architects. Despite his love for style, art and architecture, design wasn’t his initial career choice. “I remember seeing that Charlie Brown’s dad was a barber,” he says. “When I was five years old, I thought that was a cool job.”

Alas, he never did pick up the styling shears. Instead, when Kepron’s not busy working as a retail architect with spg3 clients such as Luxottica Retail, Lacoste or Boscov’s, he’s imparting knowledge to college students as an adjunct faculty member at Drexel University. Kepron has also taught at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising and the International Academy of Merchandising and Design in Montreal. In 1994, he served as director of the visual merchandising department at LaSalle International Fashion School in Singapore. “When I bring my love of design together with teaching, I am very much at home,” he says.

What has been your biggest challenge as a designer?

Early on, it was understanding that store design wasn’t all about me, the design and the architecture. I had to learn to let go of a series of messages learned in college that, as an architect, I should be saving the world from itself. I’ve learned to see the customer, the merchandise and the brand as the stars and that the things I design play a supporting role in their show.

What’s the most exciting project you’ve worked on in the past year?

As part of the renovations of the Colonie Center in Albany, N.Y., we took on a number of specialty clients. Joli Salon & Spa was a great exercise in creating a service retail environment with experiments in using texture-rich, eco-friendly materials and laminated glass.

What’s your favorite trend happening in store design?

People becoming aware that what they build ends up in a landfill after its short-lived retail lifecycle.

Least favorite?

People choosing not to be aware of the fact that each of us is a little carbon factory.

How do you measure the success of a store design?

When walking in the store, if the customer can understand the product assortment, navigate the space with ease and have the brand environment resonate in a corporeal way, while the cash register rings constantly, then you’ve got success.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

Don’t try to “do it all” on every project. The design will implode under its own creative discontinuity. Experiment with one or two ideas. Learn, and know, that there will be a host of opportunities to try out.

You grew up in a home with four brothers – what was that like?

You learned to eat quickly and there was never an end to the hand-me-downs. I have two boys now and I see my parents as saints for all of their efforts to keep it together. We sometimes have trouble just getting across the street to the park.

What’s one traveling ritual that you always follow?

I like packing. A lot. It’s like a 3-D puzzle. Just how much can you get in that little space without it being all wrinkled when you get there? I also like loading the dishwasher, for the same reasons.

Favorite place to shop?

I actually like unplanned “discovery shopping” – finding the open air markets in Southeast Asia, bazaars in Istanbul. You can just breathe in the memories in these places. They are so rich in textures and high in energy and foster a deep connection to the culture.

Mornings: casually sipping cappuccinos or feverishly rushing to make it on time?

My wife says my mornings mostly involve me rushing around to actually get out the door.

What’s an obsolete item that you won’t part with?

I got a little trophy in sixth grade – the “Most Improvement Award.” I still have it and it reminds me to take on my challenges and do it better than the first go- around.