Startup Such + Such builds collective design future in OTR

After graduating from DAAP and having experience co-oping with large design firms, three UC alums set an ambitious goal: start their own business and do it right here, in Cincinnati

Starting out of Losantiville Design Collective at 1311 Main Street in Over-the-Rhine, the team at Such + Such is perfecting design and woodworking skills while working with neighborhood businesses and creating handmade furniture products. The company’s own line of products is available at Losantiville and on Such + Such’s Etsy site. Such + Such also provides design services – founders recently helped create the build-out for Sloane Boutique.

The Losantiville Collective was formed to give creative types a place to share rent, tools and ideas. All the tenants pay rent, and the leftover money is invested in tools and an effort to  find a larger space than can hold more tenants.

After graduating in June 2010, Alex Aeschbury, Zach Darmanan-Harris and Mike Nauman started Such + Such in March 2011. From clocks to tables to coat racks, all of Such + Such’s work is crafted in OTR. The trio’s eye for beautiful craftsmanship, along with their  manufacturing skills honed in years of DAAP studio work, allow them to make simple, but eye-catching, products.

At Such + Such, every day offers a new learning opportunity. One day found the three start-up founders creating a four-foot-long spork to be used in an online video.

“We wanted to be in charge. Between us, we had worked for 18 different companies while on UC co-ops. And we knew what we didn’t want and that was to have a small part of a task, product, branding or packaging project. We wanted to dictate the direction of an entire company, from capital investments to the finish on screws,” Aeschbury says.

Such + Such founders want to expand their product line and find shops around Cincinnati and Colombus to sell them. The trio is working hard each day on learning business skills and handling a growing number of projects. But in the end, they are living their dreams and enjoying ever-changing workdays.

By Evan Wallis