Pride Family Brands has hired Marcia Blake as an independent design consultant for the award-winning manufacturer of luxury cast-aluminum outdoor furnishings and accessories. Blake currently is the president and creative director of a full-service design company specializing in outdoor environments.

Steve Lowsky, president of Pride Family Brands, says, “Marcia’s work within the casual industry is well recognized. We are looking forward to applying her design talents and expertise in the outdoor segment to define further the luxury message of Pride Family Brands within our catalogs and showrooms.” Blake’s responsibilities will include consultation on fabrics across the company’s multiple lines, including the luxury cast-aluminum Castelle® line.

Blake also will coordinate and consult on catalog photography, as well as brand and showroom displays. Blake’s expertise will be focused on Pride’s 12,000–squarefoot showroom in the Merchandise Mart in Chicago, Illinois, and its 10,000–square-foot showroom in the company’s Fort Lauderdale, Florida, headquarters.

Blake is an eight-year veteran of outdoor- furnishing design and has served on the board of directors for the Inter - national Casual Furnishings Association since 2009. “I have long been a fan of Pride Family Brands and its Castelle line and am excited to begin working with the Pride organization in the presentation of its luxury products,” Blake says