Murray Moss

Who is Murray Moss?

Murray Moss is an American design entrepreneur and founder of the design art company Moss. He has been called "America's most closely watched purveyor of industrial design", while his store has been called "the best design store in the world."

Moss began his career as a professional actor in the United States and Great Britain after his studies at Columbia University and at New York University, School of Arts. In 1978, in collaboration with Dutch designer Ronaldus Shamask, Moss launched the fashion label Shamask, which became known for its architectonic, structural designs long before such thinking in clothing came into vogue. The company rapidly expanded to include broad manufacturing of women’s and men’s fashions, international distribution and licensing. In 1990, the company’s trademarks and trade names were sold.

With the opening of the Moss shop in 1994, in SoHo, New York City, Moss was able to infuse basic principles of his previous careers into all aspects of the store—to dramatic effect. Both a sense of theatre and a sensibility reminiscent of experimental fashion characterize the shop, which presents a highly edited selection of both current as well as historical products culled from designers and manufacturers around the world. Like an editor or a curator, Moss changes the presentation of products almost daily, keeping the store fresh and current with new ideas.