Outside of the Creemore area, Klaus Neinkamper is known as a giant of the Canadian design scene.
He is credited with launching contemporary furniture design in Canada and creating a market for modern design and designers. His furniture graces Canadian government buildings and embassies all over the world, and the showroom, Klaus, has been a fixture on King Street East in Toronto since 1968. He is credited with launching the King Street East Design District. Today, there are Neinkamper showrooms in Chicago and Boston.
Klaus’s approach to the furniture business is about having the right designs, the right price, providing reliable customer service and being able to change quickly if things are not going well.
He started out importing high quality contemporary European designs to the Toronto market in the 1960s, then began manufacturing some of these designs, eventually employing local and international designers to create new products for the North American market. By hiring local designers, he created a platform for Canadian talent that had previously had no outlet. The Neinkamper name is recognized internationally for quality products with cutting edge design.
His many honours and awards include a 2003 Entrepreneur of the Year Award, a 30-year retrospective at the Design Exchange, a retrospective at the Chicago Museum of Architecture and a National Export Award presented by then Prime Minister Jean Chretien. He furnished the Governor General’s suite at Expo 86 and attended official functions with the Prince and Princess of Wales.
To their neighbours in Mulmur, Klaus and Beatrix Neinkamper are horse lovers whose Freisians were a fixture at the Creemore Santa Claus Parade for many years.
Since they purchased their property south of Creemore 43 years ago, the Neinkampers have raised 11 of the big black horses, the last one succumbing to old age about a year ago. These days, a neighbour who raises Belgians pastures his horses on their farm and the members of the local hunt use the trails for the annual Thanksgiving weekend ride. During the pandemic, the carriage house, a welcoming space, filled with photos and memorabilia, was a safe gathering space for committee members fundraising for the Creemore Village Green. Klaus and Beatrix continue to host events for friends and neighbours to thank the farmers who look after them.
In the early days, they had to work hard to afford their country get-away.
Now over 80, Klaus gets around the property on a golf cart but he continues to go to work at his furniture factory near Finch and Markham Road two days per week. These days they are happy to have a home in the city and a weekend place where they can host their three children and seven grandchildren. Now that they are older, Beatrix says winters in the Creemore area are hard. Last year they spent several months in Portugal and this year they will head off to Phoenix. She says son Klaus, who now runs the business, hopes they never sell their country home, although he really doesn’t need a 100-acre farm.