Business of Home | Waterworks
Waterworks is betting big on a new showroom—and New York City
It’s difficult to imagine a more complicated time to unveil a flagship New York showroom than 2020, but Waterworks CEO Peter Sallick is thinking positive. The coronavirus pandemic didn’t derail the grand opening of the kitchen and bath brand’s reimagined 58th Street location—it merely delayed the event by a few months, from May to October. And in lieu of a packed-in, socially undistanced opening night gala, Waterworks has donated $25,000 to City Harvest to feed New Yorkers in need.
“New York has taken some lumps, and the design community has been impacted by COVID more than in most cities, because we felt it so hard and early,” Sallick tells Business of Home. “We’re waving the flag and saying: We’re excited to be part of the early vanguard of the comeback of New York.”
The new showroom is in fact at the same site as the old Waterworks showroom—but there’s a lot more of it. A third floor has been added, bringing the store to a whopping 12,500 square feet, all of which has been redesigned (New York–based firm Gachot Studios consulted on the project). Kitchen and bath products have been integrated into the same space for the first time, and the company has expanded the area where designers can work with clients. There’s also a new hospitality kitchen—by Waterworks, natch—where guests can order drinks and coffee.
Sallick declined to peg an exact dollar figure on the renovation, but made clear it was large: “It’s our single biggest investment ever as a company.”
