Juan Quintana, the 40-year-old designer for Miami's Pavilion Furniture, makes the impression that he is unassuming, not ego driven.

And yet, in only a few years he has made his mark on the outdoor furniture business. His creations are in high-end installations from Salvatore Ferragamo's house near Florence, Italy, to the Fontainebleau, the Delano and the Eden Roc in Miami Beach.

Although Quintana has been with Pavilion for only 3 ½ years, he consulted with the company and others on designing outdoor furniture while he worked for Landgrave in Mexico.

``We heard he had left the company and we hunted him down because we knew his talents,'' says Mike Buzzella, Pavilion president and CEO. ``He's a gem. He's a diamond in the rough in this industry. His designs are fresh and new.''

Buzzella says Quintana has tweaked the ideas of many well-known designers for years but was unknown because he was behind the scenes. Finally, he is able to show what he can do and get the credit.

His talent is no surprise. Designing furniture is in his DNA.

Quintana says he learned the old-school way to make furniture while growing up in his family's furniture factory in Mexico, where his father and grandfather made carved wooden furniture. He began with graphic design and later studied interior design and the history of furniture at the University of Mexico in Mexico City.

The focus of his new collections has been contemporary, but his knowledge of history is evident in some of the details. He pulled out a folder with some of his new sketches, which showed an ``X'' back and a Greek motif on a curved arm of one chair. Another sketch revealed classic legs -- modified cabriole legs on the front and saber legs on the back.

Although his designs pay respect to tradition, the lines are pure contemporary -- sleek, clean and geometric with a focus on soft curves and a punch of bright color just right for South Florida.

SKETCH MEETING

Quintana says the design process starts with a rough sketch meeting, where a team discusses sales and talks about new ideas. His inspiration?

``I am always open,'' he says. ``Maybe I am reading a book and see a Greek detail or something that inspires me. I look at magazines and at fashion. I get ideas from everywhere.''

Once the ideas are fleshed out and agreed upon, he draws the blueprint of the frame, which is then made into a prototype. He designs upstairs, but he walks downstairs to the factory to get input from the workers who manufacture the furniture.

``Most designers create their ideas and are not in touch with the factory,'' he says. ``Sometimes you want to do a nice curve, but it is not technically possible to do so. I encourage them to tell me what they think. Sometimes the workers in the factory will say, `It's better if we do it this way.' I always ask everybody their opinion. It's amazing. They don't study design, but they have a feeling, a taste of what it should be.''

Erin Wyatt, national sales manager, says Quintana gets respect from everyone because of his talent and personality.

``Juan is the most easy-going designer on the planet,'' she says. ``He has no ego and he is a like a sponge.''

The focus of his designs right now is for the hospitality segment because of the slowdown in the furniture industry's retail sales. Before 2008, Pavilion sold 60 percent hospitality and 40 percent retail, according to Wyatt. Now, she says, sales are 80 percent hospitality. This means that almost everything Quintana designs has to be stackable -- from chaises to chairs to tables.

PLENTY OF STYLE

But stackable doesn't have to mean without style. His favorite chair, the Maui stacking lounge chair with its ``S'' curve, is a great example. Quintana loves color and this Maui chair features a bright orange sling seat with a neo-chrome finish on powder-coated aluminum that resembles stainless steel.

Not only do his designs look good, they also are comfortable. Comfort is more of a challenge with contemporary furniture, which depends on line. One of his most comfortable contemporary designs is Zatti, a deep seating collection with quilted back and seat and throw pillows.

Quintana manages to meet the comfort challenge and others with an enthusiasm that's contagious.

``The good thing about working here is I am free to do what I want,'' he says.

And how many employees can say that these days?

Charlyne Varkonyi Schaub can be reached at charlynedesign@aol.com.