Quick Takes With: Byron and Dexter Peart

The work of twin brothers Dexter and Byron Peart first caught our eye in 2019, when they pivoted from their cult-favorite brand WANT Les Essentiels to start something new: Goodee, a marketplace of globally made wares that works for the greater good. Together from their base of Montreal, Dexter and Byron Peart serve as “lead curators”, as they say, for a range of products that make a social or environmental impact, support local makers, and often help preserve “time-honored skills so that they can be passed along through generations.”

Since our first post on the duo, we’ve popped into their one-time pop-up shop at the Whitney in New York and coveted their offerings for the garden and indoors; most recently they’ve partnered with the Ace Hotel Toronto, giving a premier guest suite the Goodee treatment. But even more than their eye, we applaud the do-good ethos that Dexter and Byron have built: Goodee is B-Corp certified and part of 1 Percent for the Planet, too. “Our values are simple,” they say: “We believe in good design, good people, and good impact.”

Today, a Quick Takes double feature: The brothers share the Instagram accounts they look to for inspiration, their favorite design destinations, and what they’re bringing when they come over…

You’re invited to dinner. What’s your go-to gift?

Byron: I am kind of obsessed with fresh-cut flowers, but I also like to gift friends and loved ones something that lasts forever, so I often pair with this go-to Botero vase by Malaika.

Dexter: A bottle of Chateau Montelena Chardonnay.

What’s your desert island design/art/architecture-related book?

B: Fewer, Better Things: The Hidden Wisdom of Objects by Glenn Adamson. In both life and business, I believe in cherishing and nurturing these “fewer better things” as belongings that are continually with you through a lifetime and adapt as you move and as your life evolves.

D: Home Is Where the Heart Is by Ilse Crawford. I have not only read this book several times, I have also often gifted it to loved ones. It’s is an important study and reminder that our homes need to go beyond the physical aesthetic and touch our hearts and souls in a way that ultimately provides us and our families joy, comfort, and peace.

Which Instagram account do you go to for design inspiration?

B: @carpentersworkshopgallery.

D: @theworldofinteriors.

What has been your best house upgrade?

B: When I moved into my latest home, I didn’t want to restore the original porcelain tiling in the bathroom, so I covered the walls in a dark floral wallpaper and painted all of the trims and ceilings in deep blue, giving the room the feeling of an nighttime outdoor oasis.

D: As Montreal is a true city of four seasons, adding a bright solarium with city-facing views to our terrace has been a game changer for our family to eat, play, work, and relax. Not only did we maximize our interior living area, but we also get to experience an even closer proximity to our ever-changing environment.

What’s your design pet peeve?

B + D: To us, a well-considered home should be comfortable and reflect the personal taste, travel finds, and family heirlooms of all of the inhabitants. Our biggest pet peeve is when we witness an interior that is stripped of personality because the inhabitants try to make a space or setting that is obviously too trendy or derivative of what they see of others.

Three words that describe my design style are:

D: Midcentury modern, Scandinavian, Art Deco.

B: Eclectic, global, textured.

First design love?

D: Habitat 67 in Montreal, the Brutalist midcentury building designed for the World’s Fair by Moshe Safdie. I’ve admired it since I was a young boy and feel so privileged—for 17 years—to call it home for me and my family of four.

B: Tokyo. I’ve had the good fortune to travel to all corners of the world, but I will never forget my first time visiting Tokyo—coincidentally during cherry blossom season—and falling madly not only for the city but even more for its appreciation for ritual and tradition while embracing modernity.

Favorite design shop to visit?

D: Tokyu Hands [now called Hands], Tokyo. Clearly we have a thing for Japanese design, but I make a sort of pilgrimage to this gigantic household and DIY goods store every time I visit this vibrant city.

B: Svenskt Tenn, Stockholm. I’ve visited and brought home collectibles from this iconic design store for over 20 years.

And the last thing you purchased for your house?

B: I have Baba Tree decor items in all corners of my home, but the latest addition is this Yoomelingah Basket by Baba Tree.

D: This Carl Hansen Easy Chair. It’s my new go-to chair to unwind and read a book after a long day in the office.

Thanks, Byron and Dexter! Follow their work via Goodee and @goodeeworld.