Interview: Going undercover with Dougan Clarke, CEO of parasol-maker Tuuci

If you have ever sought shade on a veranda or a windy shoreline, there’s a good chance that you have sheltered beneath a Tuuci. The Ultimate Umbrella Co Incorporated (or Tuuci for short) was founded by entrepreneur Dougan Clarke in 1997 and has since ballooned into a paragon of parasol production, with outposts in Florida, the Netherlands and Vietnam. Its founder’s story, meanwhile, is a masterclass in doing what you know best.

“After flunking out of college, I took a job selling patio furniture,” says Clarke, from Tuuci’s Miami HQ. “I noticed that the umbrellas that we were selling would fly away or would break and were very hard to repair.” Having grown up around boats and working summer jobs in a boat-repair yard, Clarke applied his knowledge of rigging topsails to create umbrellas that would last. “The thinking was that if we could build an umbrella that was tough enough to go on a boat, it would have a long and serviceable life in a hotel or in somebody’s backyard.”

If you have ever sought shade on a veranda or a windy shoreline, there’s a good chance that you have sheltered beneath a Tuuci. The Ultimate Umbrella Co Incorporated (or Tuuci for short) was founded by entrepreneur Dougan Clarke in 1997 and has since ballooned into a paragon of parasol production, with outposts in Florida, the Netherlands and Vietnam. Its founder’s story, meanwhile, is a masterclass in doing what you know best.

“After flunking out of college, I took a job selling patio furniture,” says Clarke, from Tuuci’s Miami HQ. “I noticed that the umbrellas that we were selling would fly away or would break and were very hard to repair.” Having grown up around boats and working summer jobs in a boat-repair yard, Clarke applied his knowledge of rigging topsails to create umbrellas that would last. “The thinking was that if we could build an umbrella that was tough enough to go on a boat, it would have a long and serviceable life in a hotel or in somebody’s backyard.”

Most of Tuuci’s parasols and its newer range of cabanas are made in Miami, where the firm employs 500 people, including “shade gurus” who keep the designs and silhouettes looking sharp. Clarke is certainly bullish about the brolly. “The sun is always shining somewhere,” he says. “And we’re happy to bring a little shade.”

What time are you at your desk?
As early as possible – 07.00 or so. I find that I learn more about this company early in the day or in the later hours.

What’s the best way to prepare for leadership? On the job or an MBA?
I’m not an MBA guy and didn’t excel in that world. The most powerful thing to look for in people is entrepreneurial spirit – being able to spot opportunities and capitalise on them.

Is it better to be liked or respected?
Both. That said, you’re not out to be liked but people appreciate leadership that is fair.

Do you read management books?
No, but I read a lot of magazines and I’m across the news.

What does your support team look like?
My journey as a leader has been about learning how to be more process-driven and to get people around me to take on responsibilities. You can’t do everything – no one can. I have a PA whom three or four of us at the top of the company share; I also have a clutch of right-hand people.

What technology do you carry on trips?
I have my iPhone and a back-up because I’m often near the water and these phones too often end up going for a dip. I also bring along a laptop and an iPad for visuals in meetings.

Who should make the decisions?
The CEO can’t be making every decision. They need to put the right people in the right positions to make things happen. It’s down to the leader of each organisation to recognise that talent.
tuuci.com

The top 9 smartest workplace furniture pieces designed for comfort and collaboration

Offices should be comfortable and inspiring, allowing for moments of both individual focus and group collaboration. As such, they need to be fitted out with furniture that facilitates this, from smart industrial shelving and ergonomic seating to chic planters and even exercise equipment. By doing so, companies can help everyone from ceos to interns stay on top of their game. Here, we survey the smartest pieces. — L

To celebrate his love of adventure, Matt Hranek, founder and editor of men’s magazine Wm Brown, created a bar trolley in partnership with Another Country – a UK furniture firm that draws inspiration from the Shaker movement, Scandinavian aesthetics and Japanese woodwork. Made from oak-veneered plywood, it’s ideal for serving a midweek apéritif.
anothercountry.com

Lightness of touch characterises the design of the mdl System, a furniture collection that features desks and workstations in various shapes and sizes. Its fastening system allows it to be positioned as required, making it useful for workspaces where seating layouts might shift from project to project. Cable-management accessories, shelves and dividing panels complement this desk, which perches on industrial aluminium legs.
unifor.it

This ash planter is suitable for almost any location, from outdoor terraces to conference rooms. The self-watering tub will keep plants happy with minimal human input.
squarely-copenhagen.com

Designed by Gianfranco Frattini in 1970, this luminaire is named after the Italian for a type of poisonous snake: asp. It can be twisted to create direct light for working and reading or turned towards the wall for a gentler glow.
gubi.com

This chic sofa by GamFratesi has a slender yet sturdy tubular construction that supports plump down cushions and elegantly shaped armrests. The soft contours and generous proportions make this a welcome addition to any waiting room. Complement it with GamFratesi’s Kite armchair, with its distinctive enveloping backrest.
porro.com

This compact radio receives FM, digital dab1 and internet stations. It’s also easy to operate, using the two knobs on the front and the neatly aligned buttons on the top.
technisat.com

A great alternative for those who can’t get out onto open water on their lunch break, Technogym’s Skillrow machine helps to build up endurance with its Aquafeel technology, which mimics the feel of actual rowing.
technogym.com

Composed of metal boxes made from perforated sheets, this modular system comes with in-built storage and can be cleverly deployed to break up an office floor plan.
formuswithlove.se

Storied Japanese furniture firm Kokuyo’s Pallo chair has short armrests, allowing the seat to be pulled close to a desk, while its rounded form keeps its footprint small. It also adjusts its locking strength to match the weight of the sitter, meaning that it won’t budge should you put on some extra kilos after a few trips to the izakaya.
kokuyo-furniture.co.jp

The late-in-life entrepreneur: How designer Fujiwo Ishimoto started afresh after retirement

For some, retirement is an opportunity to take a well-earned rest. For 83-year-old Japanese textile designer Fujiwo Ishimoto, however, it marked the moment when he decided to change the course of his life and launch a new business. After nearly five decades in Finland, much of it spent working for lifestyle brand Marimekko, Ishimoto upped sticks in 2020 and moved to Matsuyama, a city of half a million people, in Ehime prefecture on the island of Shikoku. It wasn’t far from where he had grown up. Life had come full circle.

“I always thought that I would come back to Japan,” he says. “I don’t have family in Finland. Eventually, I realised that I had nothing to keep me there.” After designing some 400 textile patterns for Marimekko, he started afresh with his own brand, Mustakivi, which means “black stone” in Finnish. He built a small studio and showroom on a sloping street leading up to a temple in the Dogo neighbourhood – the home of what is said to be the oldest hot spring in Japan. Today he spends his days there designing at a large table and exhibiting his vibrant textiles and ceramics.

“I thought about basing myself in Kyoto but it was too expensive and I didn’t know anybody there,” he says. “In Matsuyama, I’m close to Tobe, my hometown, where I can source clay for my ceramics. My sister and her family live nearby too. Plus, it’s about the same size as Helsinki so the scale feels very familiar.”

Marimekko, which was founded in Helsinki in 1951, has always had a strong audience in Japan. Ishimoto had encountered some of the best Finnish design by the likes of Kaj Franck at a department-store exhibition in Japan in 1964. He started working in graphic design and advertising but left in 1970 to travel, stopping in London, New York and Copenhagen before landing in Finland. “It was November so it was white with snow,” he says. “It rarely snows in Ehime so it was exciting.”

After a few attempts (and rejections), he was hired by Marimekko as a textile designer in 1974 and ended up staying for 32 years. In 1989 he also started working for ceramics brand Arabia, where he built up an impressive body of work with a tightly woven mix of Japanese and Finnish influences. His products and textiles have Finnish names but feature Japanese motifs drawn from nature and are suffused with the two cultures’ shared sense of practicality. Kuppi is a simple ceramic cup for everyday use that would work equally well for green tea as for coffee. The Tuuli cup borrows its design from grass swaying in the breeze. Keiryu is a vivid blue towel inspired by the flow of a mountain stream and manufactured in Imabari, the centre of Japanese towel making, which is also in Ehime.

Many of Ishimoto’s Marimekko designs seem to travel between his homeland and Europe, with influences ranging from Japanese flowers to decorations of village houses that he saw in rural Poland. Nature is still his biggest inspiration – the citrus that grew in his family home or the flowers he noticed alongside a railway track.

In Tobe, a town famous for its porcelain, Ishimoto is now working with ceramics using his own electric kiln. This past summer he covered the showroom walls with ceramic magnolia flowers and exhibited bowls whose brightly coloured hues were inspired by kamifusen, traditional Japanese paper balloons.

Mustakivi has allowed Ishimoto to revisit some of his earlier designs too. On the studio table, there’s a vase that was once rejected for being too complicated to make. A striking tenugui cotton cloth on sale in the shop is printed with an old design that was originally turned down by Marimekko. Another black-and-white cloth features a drawing of a carnation that Ishimoto used on a plate 30 years ago.

The shop is popular for its towels, tote bags, cards, ceramic tableware – made by a factory in Tobe – and cloths printed with his many designs. Despite his achievements, Ishimoto is self-deprecating and seems genuinely surprised by the level of interest in his creations. He likes to work in peace, pursuing the designs that he cares about. As for the future, he is open to offers. He says that he wants to focus more on pottery these days. “Working like this with my hands is keeping me healthy.”
mustakivi.jp

Daeyang Jamsu: The bespoke wetsuit manufacturer that’s keeping Busan’s freediving traditions afloat

Daeyang Jamsu is preserving a vital part of South Korea’s cultural heritage in a quiet corner of Busan’s Yeongdo Island. At this family-run shop, Yong Bookie and his wife, Her Mi-Ok, produce hand-cut wetsuits in their studio for the haenyeo, female freedivers who have harvested the seas for generations. The divers know that investing in tailored gear gives them the edge in the water, so they choose trusted specialists over cheaper, mass-produced alternatives.

For centuries, the haenyeo have hunted for shellfish and other sea creatures along South Korea’s coast. Historically, skills were passed down from mother to daughter but demand for such abilities has fallen; today, 90 per cent of them are aged over 60. Divers used to descend into the depths in white cotton bathing suits, using hot stones to stay warm for longer. Recognising the challenges facing these women, Bookie’s grandfather sought a solution. More than 50 years ago, he welcomed a group of Japanese wetsuit craftsmen to the island, who returned with a suitcase full of neoprene, leading to the opening of the area’s first wetsuit shop. Bookie and Mi-Ok work with three employees who specialise in carving precise lines in the rubber and stitching it together. Everything is cut by hand, leaving little waste. Whether a finger on a glove or a toe reinforcement on a boot, it’s all made to measure. “We don’t make small, medium or large,” says Mi-Ok. “Instead, we make something that fits precisely.”

The key to Daeyang Jamsu’s success is in maintaining a close relationship with the haenyeo and knowing their measurements and their wishes. Instead of online orders, divers contact the shop by phone or visit annually to buy a new suit or have adjustments made. “In the old days, divers used their suits for three years before ordering a new one,” says Bookie. “But these days they change suits every year.”

A 5mm- or 6mm-thick freediving suit typically costs 400,000 won (€270) and the team here produces more than 500 of them per year. “When I was young, many divers couldn’t pay us in money, so they paid us in seafood,” says Bookie. Fortunately, the situation has improved despite dwindling numbers of haenyeo. As one of the few remaining specialists – and with a small number of young women still keen to keep the tradition alive – business for Daeyang Jamsu looks watertight.
94 Hansarang-gil,  Yeongdo-gu, Busan