Fishtown’s designing eye

Suraya, Kalaya, Archway Hotel Residence, Maison Rose, Pizzeria Beddia, The Bend, Picnic.

All of these Philly hot spots have something in common: the detailed, discerning eye of designer and entrepreneur Katherine Lundberg.

And many of them are in Fishtown.

Lundberg first experienced the neighborhood in 2015 when she transferred to Philly from Atlanta to work as design manager for Anthropologie, an URBN brand. She instantly connected with Fishtown.

“There’s an openness here that I love,” said Lundberg, 38.

She especially appreciated Fishtown’s abundance of industrial factory-style buildings, envisioning the ways they could be adapted and repurposed.

When she began house hunting, Lundberg felt drawn to the same type of home — a modern, classy, open-space concept with clean lines and elevated selections for the exterior and windows. Unlike other houses, where she would need to make changes to the flooring, backsplash, or other elements, she could see herself moving into one of these homes seamlessly.

She was determined to meet the developer behind the buildings.

It turned out to be Roland Kassis, founder of Fishtown-based Kassis & Co, who invested in real estate, construction, restaurants, film production, and nonprofits. The pair instantly clicked.

At the time, Kassis was developing Suraya, the now popular Lebanese restaurant in Fishtown. He tasked Lundberg with designing the interior, which she did on a freelance basis.

The plans flourished under her direction. The 1,200-square-foot industrial space — the type of Fishtown architecture that had captured her appreciation — was already built with a Middle Eastern design in the flooring and walls.

“I first came in as a problem solver,” recalled Lundberg. “When I came in, there was a masculinity to the project. I thought, ‘How do we keep things crisp, timeless, and minimal, but also with an unexpected softness?’”

Over six months, she filled the space, already rich in natural light, with warm and inviting details. On a whitewashed brick wall, she curated the numerous floating shelves with a menagerie of multicolored vases containing flowers she made by hand.

In early 2018, Lundberg left Anthropologie and began working with Kassis full-time.

“I was open to the risk,” she said.

She dove into creating Suraya’s outdoor oasis in the courtyard, learning on the job as she oversaw design, specification, art direction, and project management.

She also took on work at other Kassis businesses — R&D Cocktail Bar, Pizzeria Beddia, Condesa, and El Techo.

“I realized I loved working with the architects and custom fabricators, selecting materials, and guiding the details,” she said. “I became that connective-tissue person from idea to implementation, being sure no stone was left unturned.”

Kassis quickly recognized Lundberg’s potential, that she was “a quick learner with a keen eye for details.” At URBN she had managed a team of 25 designers, so in addition to her artistic talent, she had management skills, he said.

“This business is a man’s world and she was able to manage the architects and subs,” said Kassis. “She built a strong reputation and held them accountable.”

He also recognized her drive and determination to grow.

“She’s ahead of the curve when it comes to design and style and the next trend in fashion,” Kassis said. “She’s an entrepreneur who is able to help run and manage our businesses.”

While Lundberg handles interior design and articulating the point of view on every project, her other roles differ from job to job.

On Picnic, a wine shop and restaurant in East Kensington, she collaborated with Defined Hospitality and Joe Beddia, handling brand and creative direction, specification and specialized procurement, and project management.

She and Kassis have collaborated on more than a dozen hospitality projects, including restaurants, a yoga studio, hotels, and apartments.

They delved into their first apartment project in 2018 with Archway Hotel Residence, a boutique 11-suite property. Utilizing an invisible service model — the hotel doesn’t have a front desk — the development was a prototype for other similar projects. In addition to overseeing the design, Lundberg became co-owner and operator.

The pandemic was a disrupter, but ultimately a pivotal one.

“It gave me the space to focus deeply on Archway, allowing me to forge brand partnerships with companies like Dyson, Aesop, and Theragun,” she said.

She envisaged every detail of Archway, refining the brand from the inside out.

“I had to take it on soup to nuts,” she said. “That’s my obsession with experience.”

Recognizing her vision and dedication, Kassis made her a partner in 2023.

Briquette Studio, the design company she founded in 2020, now serves as the design arm of Kassis & Co. Briquette specializes “in real estate development, interior design, curation, and brand identity,” said Lundberg.

At Kalaya, in Fishtown, owner Chutatip “Nok” Suntaranon wanted a space that felt warm, welcoming, and elegant, but also down-to-earth.

Enter Lundberg, who spent two years designing the space, which opened in 2022. Lundberg visited the chef’s home for inspiration, noting, for example, Suntaranon’s appreciation for German light designer Ingo Maurer. Lundberg included the artist’s fixtures in her design.

“Katherine was able to bring my vision into light from her creative mind,” said Suntaranon, a 2023 Beard Award winner, who recently published Kalaya’s Southern Thai Kitchen: A Cookbook.

The way Suntaranon sees it, the restaurant is brick and stone, but it’s the hospitality that makes the difference. “Katherine was able to translate and imprint my intention and show the true personality of how Kalaya should be,” she said.

In 2024, Lundberg and Kassis opened Maison Rose, a fully furnished three-bedroom residence under the Archway Collective portfolio. Around the same time, they opened The Bend, a design-forward building with 61 rental units on Frankford Avenue. Lundberg served as co–project manager in collaboration with Norr architects, overseeing everything from naming the building to branding, creative direction, and staging.

She is currently on a team renovating two additional properties on Frankford Avenue, using a similar model.

1716 Frankford will feature 40 residential apartments with ground-floor retail, and 1224 Frankford will expand the ‘deconstructed hotel’ concept with 59 units.

“We want to design these as apartment buildings so that in the worst-case scenario, say another pandemic, we won’t have a problem where hotels sit empty,” she said. “It gives bankers and investors confidence.”

Creating a thriving neighborhood is not just about food and beverage, Lundberg said.

“You have to have the other fillers that make a strong, well-rounded neighborhood,” she said. “That includes retail, wellness, art, culture, hotel accommodations, and office space.”

Eventually, she said, she will need to move on to another neighborhood ripe for development.

But Fishtown will always be the place where she earned her chops. And it all started with an insistence on knowing more about those adapted industrial buildings.

“I’ve always been a squeaky wheel with goals,” she said. “Speak up about what you want. There is power in saying it out loud and manifesting it, especially for women.”