Historic Milwaukee, Modern Luxury

Serif does not have an incredibly storied history.

Originally constructed in 1894 for Pabst Brewing as a warehouse, the Heinn Looseleaf Paper Co. took possession in 1910 and operated there for 50 years.

And that’s kind of it.

No baseball teams were founded here, no ephemera like hula hoops or lava lamps were conceived within their walls, and no luminaries set foot on the premises. This building served its purpose in providing honest, sturdy, elegant spaces for honest, sturdy, elegant Milwaukeeans to build their lives.

And that’s not nothing.

Honest, sturdy , elegant spaces for honest, sturdy Milwaukeeans to build their lives.

In fact, that’s something.

Today, Serif marries classic and modern in both form and function. It is not a throwback, it is a repurposing, a reshaping, an evolution of space over time.

Serif does not have to try hard. It is effortless. It is not screaming for attention, it is a song that is both familiar and intriguing.

If Serif were a man, he would wear a well-tailored blue blazer, a crisp white shirt, dark jeans and lived-in Stan Smiths without socks. Heck, if Serif was a woman it would wear that exact same thing. Serif does not care what is cool. Serif is comfortable with who it is.

Serifs are, of course, the little strokes at the end of certain typefaces. However, they are not simply decorative elements or a vestige of time past. Serifs help words flow and humanize type. Our brains prefer to read serifs.

The building has its own serifs in the form of the corbelled turret and cornice and relief arches; all architectural devices designed to give the building more flow and make it more lyrical and more human.

Endless type styles have come and gone over the centuries, but serifs remain. Never tired, never out of date…just beautiful, elegant and timeless. Come home to the timeless style and comfort of Serif!