How's this for a special effect? Not content with being one of Hollywood's largest prop- and set-design companies, Cinnabar recently transformed itself into a designer for another entertainment industry: shopping.
Retail is "a natural crossover" says Jonathan Katz, the 42-year-old founder, CEO and president of Cinnabar, which in 11 years has grown from a garage operation to an $8.5 million-a-year business. Based in the old Hollywood Center on North Las Palmas, Katz and his 100 staffers still churn out the razzle-dazzle--collapsing beach shacks for Total cereal ads, exploding fax machines for Canon--but nowadays, better than 20% of Cinnabar's business comes from designing and building themed retail environments--stores. "Entertainment sells," Katz explains. "When people aren't shopping for necessities, they're shopping to find happiness."
