Who’s  in Store?

The owner and chief executive officer of Soicher-Marin, a multimillion-dollar supplier of framed decorative art to designers of top hotels, stores, and fashionable homes in the U.S. and abroad, Ed Marin also happens to be an under- the-radar type of guy. In September 2009, he quietly moved his second-generation company from Los Angeles to Sarasota. That’s already reaping rewards for the local community.

Though customers will still have to buy his framed art from retailers like The Sarasota Collection Home Store, Marin recently opened Soicher-Marin’s doors to consumers looking for great deals in custom framing. “As a volume picture framer to the high-end trade, we can offer great custom framed pieces for a fraction of what local stores would have to charge,” says Marin. “The average art framer pays three times what we do, and we can pass our savings on to the community.”

While saving money is on everyone’s mind these days, there’s also the thrill of working with Marin and his staff of artisans to select the perfect frame—at the go-to destination for great designers from coast to coast.

Soicher-Marin Gallery, 7245 16th St. E., Suite 110, (941) 308-7500

Can’t live without? “An arts-sensitive community. Sarasota has great opera, theater, galleries and we can get to any of them from our home in half an hour—that’s not possible in L.A.,” Marin says.

What this town needs “Sarasota needs very little. It’s a great place to live and so easy to get around. But the town could use one or two more high-end men’s stores,” says Marin, a fan of brands like Borelli and Kiton.

Get framed Soicher-Marin has opened its doors to consumers for the first time ever, offering high-quality picture framing (from $125 including mat and frame).

Bottom Line? You’ll save money and the landfill with adorable wash-and-wear swimsuit/diapers for babies in myriad prints for boys and girls. An inner layer draws moisture away from the skin; a middle layer is super absorbent; and a waterproof outer layer prevents leakage. Swim diaper and matching sunhats in UPF 50+ nylon are $14.95 each at Sarasota’s new mecca for grandmas: Picobello, 1462 Main St., (941) 373-0475.

Word of Mouse Check out the 21st-century version of Dorothy Parker’s Round Table: a bookstore, newsstand, computer school, Apple store and café with fabulous crepes (from $6.95) made right before your eyes. Geeks and novices are lining up for Steve Jobs’ new iPad (from $499) at Media on Main and Café Palm, 1341 Main St., (941) 914-9411.

Take a Bough This lovely 84-inch media cabinet ($3,775) is adorned with extraordinary cast aluminum branches where ordinary legs and pulls would be. It’s just one of an eclectic assortment of soft contemporary, transitional and Old World furnishings at the newest decorative home store in town. Sarasota Chic Home Décor, 7484 S. Tamiami Trail, (941) 924-8666.