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Commitment to Sustainability, Community:
Home Accents Today Names Porto “Retail Star”

APRIL 21 2008 (RALEIGH, NC) – When Home Accents Today magazine announced its “50 Retail Stars” recent, Porto of Raleigh and Chapel Hill was among them.

Home Accents Today is a premier trade magazine for the home accents industry. The editors’ annual list recognizes enterprising retailers who are experiencing success in their respective markets with innovative strategies and creative merchandising while maintaining a strong presence in their communities.
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PORTO’S MICHAEL PERRY TO JOIN DUKE DISCUSSION ON THE SUSTAINABLE FURNITURE MOVEMENT

APRIL 10 2008 (DURHAM, NC) – Michael Perry, co-owner of PORTO, a fine home furnishings store in Raleigh and Chapel Hill, will join South Cone Trading Company founder and CEO Gerry Cooklin at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business on Friday, April 11, at 11:45 a.m., to discuss “From the Rainforest to the Living Room: The Movement Toward Sustainable Furniture.” The event is part of the Fuquay School’s Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship (CASE).

Cooklin, of Gardena, California, will discuss his pioneering efforts in the sustainable furniture manufacturing industry. Perry will provide his perspective on the challenges and rewards of being a “green” home furnishings retailer and interior designer.
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Porto Announces Its 2008 “CHAIRity”
To Benefit Habitat for Humanity of Wake County

MARCH 3 2008 (RALEIGH, NC) – To celebrate the role artists play in advancing cultural and social development, and to align that role with the contribution Habitat for Humanity makes to society, Porto, a fine home furnishings store in Raleigh and Chapel Hill, has announced its second gala fundraiser for Habitat/Wake County, which will be held in the Raleigh location in North Hills on Saturday, October 18.

Porto is now inviting Triangle area artists to “recycle” used wooden chairs -- in stock at Habitat/Wake’s ReStore Center in Raleigh -- into one-of-a-kind works of art. The chairs are free to artists, who will be asked to translate this year’s theme: “Going Green Just Got Elegant,” a Porto slogan that reflects the stores’ commitment to sustainable furniture manufacturing. The chairs-turned-art must be completed by August 30 and delivered to Porto. They will then be exhibited in public spaces around Raleigh for a month leading up to the evening of October 18, when gala attendees will bid on these unusual works of original art.
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Porto Welcomes New Designer/Sales Associate

FEBRUARY 11 2008 (RALEIGH, NC) – PORTO, a find home furnishings store in Raleigh and Chapel Hill, announces that Mark Sieber has joined the North Hills staff as a designer and sales associate. Sieber brings years of experience in retail and interior design to Porto. He has worked at West Side Furnishings in Raleigh, the former Domicile in Chapel Hill, Nowell's in Cary, and served as manager of DiProvincia in Greensboro for five years. He attended Guilford College in Greensboro and UNC-Chapel Hill.

“Mark came highly recommended from his previous stores,” said Emily Barrett, who co-owns Porto with Michael Perry. “He has already worked with several of the lines we carry, so he was able to hit the ground running. We are really happy to have him on board, both because of his excellent credentials and his stellar reputation.” READ MORE (.pdf)


Porto of Raleigh Introduces Vintage Porto! Original Jewelry

DECEMBER 11 2007 (RALEIGH, NC) – Just in time for the holiday gift season, Porto, a fine home furnishings store in Raleigh and Chapel Hill, is introducing “Vintage Porto!”, a new collection of hand-crafted jewelry by Porto co-owner Emily Barrett. The collection of earrings and necklaces is inspired by vintage designs, according to Barrett. It features some vintage beads “and other finds,” she said, as well as pearls, crystal and wood beads, and sterling silver. “I started making my own jewelry several years ago just for fun as a creative outlet,” she said. She decided to carry it in the Raleigh location because “I think it matches our design aesthetic. Anyone who enjoys the Porto style is going to like this jewelry line as well.” READ MORE (.pdf)

Conservation & Cost Savings: Furniture Retailer Replaces All Store Bulbs With CFLs

OCTOBER 17 2007 (RALEIGH/CHAPEL HILL, NC) – When owners Michael Perry and Emily Barrett of Porto, a home furnishings store with locations in Raleigh and Chapel Hill, learned that they could reduce the amount of CO2 that an SUV emits over a year by replacing just 10 regular 100-watt incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) bulbs, they decided to take it much further. They’ve replaced all the light bulbs in both stores with CFLs. But there is more to their mission than environmentalism. As business people, the amount of money they’d save on energy bills was an offer they couldn’t refuse. READ MORE (.pdf)

Porto Joins The Sustainable Furniture Council

JULY 19 2007 (CHAPEL HILL, NC) – Porto, a fine home furnishings and accessories store with locations in Raleigh’s North Hills and Chapel Hill’s Eastgate Shopping Center, has become a founding member of the Sustainable Furniture Council (SFC) and the only furniture store in the state to be accredited by the organization thus far.

According to SFC founder Gary Cooklin, CEO of South Cone Furniture in California, the Council has two objectives: “to assist manufacturers in adopting sustainable practices” in alliance with the harvesting standards established by the Forest Stewardship Council, and “to promote sustainable products.” READ MORE (.pdf)

Porto to Sponsor a Habitat for Humanity House in Wake County

JUNE 4 2007 (RALEIGH, NC) – Porto, a high-end home furnishings store with locations in Raleigh and Chapel Hill, is co-sponsoring the construction of a Habitat for Humanity house in Wake County with U.S. presidential candidate and former Senator John Edwards’ family and Bass, Nixon & Kennedy, an engineering firm in Raleigh.

In November of 2006, Porto’s co-owners Emily Barrett and Michael Perry launched their first annual gala and art auction fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity of Wake County. The in-store event raised over $13,000 that will be used to purchase materials for the house, according to Debbie Fox-Davis, major gifts officer. READ MORE (.pdf)

Porto Designers Create National Award Winner

MAY 14 2007 (RALEIGH, NC) – According to Salon Today magazine’s panels of judges, Samuel Cole Salon in North Raleigh, designed by Michael Perry and Clark Hipolito of Porto home furnishings in Raleigh, has the second most beautiful and innovative interior of any hair styling salon in North America.

The salon’s owners Jack and Joelle Ray, recently learned that their remodeled and renovated salon has been named First Runner Up in Salon Today’s annual “Salons of the Year” décor competition, placing it second only to the grand-prize winner, Fekkai Beaute De Provence Salon in New York City. READ MORE (.pdf)

Porto Presents An Evening of Art & Entertainment
Featuring new photos by Peter Christopher Hutson

MAY 9 2007 (RALEIGH, NC) – Porto, a fine home furnishings store in Raleigh’s North Hills, will _continue its special in-store events by presenting an evening of music, wine, and the latest photographs of Raleigh photographer Peter Christopher Hutson on Saturday, May 19, from 7 to 10 p.m.

Hutson, who travels the world in search of his images, recently journeyed to Mexico’s Taxco and La Costa Grande (big coast) of the state of Guerrero, where he captured the framed photographs that will be on display and on sale at Porto that evening. Taxco is known for its colonial architecture and narrow, cobbled streets. La Costa Grande encompasses an area that extends from Acapulco in the west to the mouth of the Balsas River. READ MORE (.pdf)

Porto To Open New Location In Chapel Hill
Featuring “our greenest selection ever”

APRIL 28 2007 (RALEIGH, NC) – Porto, a fine home furnishings and accessories store in Raleigh’s North Hills, will open of its second locating in mid-May in Chapel Hill’s Eastgate Shopping Center between East Franklin Street and US 15-501.

Porto has built a reputation in Raleigh for featuring high-end, handcrafted furnishings designed and manufactured by companies that exercise and promote sustainable forestry and sourcing practices, such as South Cone, a world leader in sustainable furniture. South Cone furniture has been a staple in the Raleigh store since it opened over two years ago. READ MORE (.pdf)

Porto Welcomes New Designer/Sales Associate

MARCH 1 2007 (RALEIGH, NC) – PORTO, a fine home furnishings and accessories store in North Hills, recently welcomed Gail Broome to its interior design and sales associate staff. Broome, a native of San Francisco, CA, received her degree in interior design/interior architecture from the University of California at Berkeley. Before entering the design field, she worked as an options trader in San Francisco. She moved to Durham three years ago so that her husband could attend Duke University. She worked at Storehouse in Chapel Hill before joining Porto. READ MORE (.pdf)

Porto Raises over $12,000 for Habitat for Humanity of Wake County

JANUARY 2007 (RALEIGH, NC) – Porto, a fine home furnishings and accessories store in Raleigh’s North Hills, raised over $12,000 during its first annual fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity of Wake County, which was held in the store in November. The fundraiser began last September when Porto owners Emily Cash, Michael Perry, and Clark Hipolito decided to celebrate the store’s second year in the home furnishings business by actively supporting the organization that supplies homes for people who wouldn’t have them otherwise.

“This just seemed fitting and natural for us,” said Perry. As advocates of local artists, the partners also wanted to celebrate the role art plays in advancing the community’s cultural and social development, and to align that role with the extraordinary contribution Habitat makes to society. From these considerations, the idea evolved for an art auction entitled “The Passage To Civilized Living,” which is the store’s slogan. READ MORE (.pdf)

Porto Team Named “Best Interior Designer 2006”

JUNE 15 2006 (RALEIGH, NC) – The design team at Porto, a fine home furnishings and accessories store in Raleigh’s North Hills, has been voted “Best Interior Designer” in Citysearch.com’s Best Of Citysearch annual polling. The team won in both Audience and Editorial categories.

Interior designers and Porto owners Emily Barrett, Michael Perry and Clark Hipolito received more votes than any other area designers after visitors to the website cast votes for their favorite businesses in categories including restaurants, nightlife, hotels, services and shopping. The polling began when Citysearch editors nominated area businesses. Visitors to the website could chose from those or nominate their own favorites for the Audience winner. READ MORE (.pdf)