Evan Cole (born 1st of January 1961) is the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the " United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, ...

founder and CEO of H.D. Buttercup, a home furnishings and interiors retailer with five California locations in

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(Culver City, Santa Monica and Downtown Arts District, Orange County) and

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(SOMA). Born and raised in

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, Cole attended

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when he was 16 years old.

Career

Cole's entrepreneurial journey started when he secured the first-ever licenses to sell IBM personal computers and franchise retail VAR One Hour Photos. He also ran a seasonal holiday store called the Holiday Spirit before entering the home furnishings industry. In 1982, Cole joined the ABC Carpet Store on 19th and Broadway in New York. He expanded the product line by adding an eclectic mix of rugs, antiques, linens, bodums, furniture, lighting and accessories from his travels around the world. He founded

ABC Home ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

in 1985 and opened their first restaurant in 1997. Through combining unexpected pieces together, juxtaposing a variety of decorating styles, and multi-layering, Cole introduced the home as fashion concept. He created a mix and match fashion aesthetic that had never been done with furniture. In 1994, Cole received the NRF (National Retail Federation) Retailer of the Year award. As Chief Executive of ABC Carpet and Home, Cole was responsible for the company's annual revenue growth from $3 million in 1982 to $170 million in 2004, when he left the company. TimothyOulton@HDButtercup324rt

In 2005, Evan opened the first H.D. Buttercup store in the historic

Helms Bakery The Helms Bakery on the border of Los Angeles and Culver City, California, was a notable industrial bakery of Southern California that operated from 1931 to 1969. The buildings have now been adapted for reuse as retail shops, restaurants, and fur ...

complex in Los Angeles. Over 100,000 square feet of maple floors, redbrick walls and 30-foot exposed beams, the open layout store is powered by solar electricity, carries furniture, gifts and accessories. In addition to in-house lines the space houses showrooms of top designers including

Timothy Oulton Timothy Oulton (1967 – 3 March 2022) was a British luxury furniture designer born in Manchester whose modern British style has become globally popular. He was founder and creative director of the furniture brand Timothy Oulton which, as ...

, Andrew Martin, Stark Carpet, Lillian August and Cisco Brothers, making it a popular destination with interior designers. In 2010, Evan Cole opened a 500 square feet H.D. Buttercup store in the SOMA neighborhood (

South of Market, San Francisco South of Market (SoMa) is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California, situated just south of Market Street. It contains several sub-neighborhoods including South Beach, Yerba Buena, and Rincon Hill. SoMa is home to many of the city's museums ...

) of San Francisco. In 2014, H.D. Buttercup opened at 44,000 sq.ft store at the SOCO design centre in Costa Mesa in Orange County . In 2015, H.D. Buttercup opened a 25,000 square feet store in Santa Monica at the former Fred Segal store, and a new 30,000 square feet worldwide headquarters and company store in the Arts District in Downtown LA housing a completely new urban style. Cole is an active real estate investor. In 2007, he paid $4.8 million for a . apartment at

15 Central Park West 15 Central Park West (also known as 15 CPW) is a luxury residential condominium along Central Park West, between 61st and 62nd Streets adjacent to Central Park, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. It was constructed from 2005 t ...

. In 2011, he put it on the market for $9 million. Cole was cited by

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''Portfolio Magazine'' as

Personal Finance Personal finance is the financial management which an individual or a family unit performs to budget, save, and spend monetary resources over time, taking into account various financial risks and future life events. When planning personal fin ...

Winner in the December 2008 issue.

Awards

*NRF (National Retail Federation) Retailer of the Year Award, 1994 *Personal Finance Winner, Portfolio Magazine, December 2008.

References

*Levine, D., Smart Investor in

Real Estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more genera ...

, Evan Cole, Conde Nast Portfolio, December 2008, p. 58.

External links

H.D. Buttercup
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, Evan Living people American retail chief executives 1961 births