patriciawatt

You think this man isn’t with me much of the time?  Just walk into a Loblaw’s, Metro, Wal-Mart- (US & Canada) – LCBO or Beer Store at home and there he is.

And now I have travelled half way around the world to Africa where I find him again in the stores he worked with here like – Pick ’N Pay, Ackerman’s, and Truworth’s.  Walking into Pick ’n Pay – large grocery retailer – and you can feel the hand (or pen) of Don Watt in the design of the retail space.

Don also told me that he had created millionaires in the Townships in Africa with his idea of taking an unused shipping container, cutting a window in it, and painting it bright happy colours and selling chicken from these unique “restaurants”.  I took a photo of one, which I cannot say was Don’s, but it certainly has his iconic black and yellow colours. 

It makes me feel very proud of the impact he had on retailers and customers like you and I around the world, and a little sad that he is not here to see his legacy.

It also underlines the significance of the Legacy Award that Don received posthumously from  OCAD – Ontario College of Art & Design – last fall.