To start, could you please introduce yourself and tell us about your role at fabric?

I am Theresa Dillon, Marketing Director at fabric. I manage our corporate and project marketing efforts. From a marketing standpoint, I am also closely involved in the planning of our project’s interior design, unit layouts, features and amenities to ensure that it aligns with the project’s brand and is representative of fabric and our NOTBORING ethos.

A lot of people have been resonating with the NOTBORING philosophy. What does it mean to you?

I think people are finding NOTBORING to be really refreshing. Basically, it comes down to the fact that we only have one life and it should be exciting. We want our projects to give people the freedom to live their best lives. We try to approach our work differently, push boundaries and heighten experiences so that our residents get the most out of their lives.

We focus on providing everyday amenities positioned around wellness to improve the health and wellbeing of our residents and help bring the community together both inside the building and the neighbourhood. We design our buildings to make life more convenient and healthier. fabric’s purpose-built rental design is also inspired by what you might find in a cool boutique hotel – experiential and layered, which is nuanced and tells the story in so many creative ways that leave a lasting impression.

How is that brand story achieved and maintained in a project that takes years to come together?

We have started diving deep on our project visioning process. It’s an important part of the process and yet it doesn’t always get the time and attention it deserves from the onset of a new project. We are moving the visioning forward in our process so that exterior architecture, interior design and branding can all be anchored by the same project vision.

At the end of the day, that common theme should be felt throughout the project from the merch to the landscaping to the amenity furniture. This opens the door to a lot of creative opportunities which makes my job very fun!

What’s a recent marketing initiative that you enjoyed working on?

Celebrating fabric’s 10 years in business has been fun- especially the 10-Years in a Flash video (here if you haven’t seen it yet!)

It’s so great to see the progress that has been made over the past decade. The projects that went from plans on paper to actual homes and businesses contributing to the City. It’s amazing to see our hard work in real form.

Do you have an example of one of those project decisions?

Yes. Taking it back to our Habitat project in Mount Pleasant, there was a lot of discussion around what type of window to install in the commercial space on the corner of Guelph and the laneway. We really wanted to bring some life to the lane and activate it in a way that you see in laneway cultures in other parts of the world. An accordion window required more coordination and was more costly than typical glazing but we had a vision and really wanted to see it through so that in the summertime, it could be opened up and the operating business could have seating along the lane and a space that seamlessly flowed inside out.

An independent café is now operating in that space – AM Café – and it is a local East Van favourite. They are doing well and have recently expanded into the neighboring commercial unit at Habitat as well. This little corner is buzzing with activity, especially in the summer when the accordion is open. Working on this video brought back a lot of memories of little decisions we make in our projects, sometimes years before they are built, with the hope of doing something cool and meaningful in the city.

This 10-Year interview series has also been a really nice way to shed light on the people that make fabric what it is, because we have a very special culture here. Developers often get a bad rep – watch one Hallmark movie and it’s likely about a developer trying to ruin the town – but it couldn’t be further from the truth here.  We have an amazing team that works hard to make a positive impact on our communities.

With several exciting projects underway, what’s one feature or amenity you’re most excited about?

We are currently in the design phase of a rental project in east Vancouver that has a small commercial bodega on the ground floor. The building is a high rise but this bodega will be the street level experience that the whole building is known for. We have been calling it the barnacle as it’s kind of its very own thing that is attached to the building. I think the design and experience of this space is going to be something really special and will become a new favorite community spot.

Outside of work what’s something you are excited for?

I’m really looking forward to getting back into running. I had an ACL repair this year and have been patiently waiting until I am healed enough to get back out there. I can’t wait to do a lap on the seawall!