Murray Moss is the tastemaker behind the legendary SoHo design and housewares store Moss.

Moss moved to New York in the late '60s to attend NYU and initially pursued an acting career, but changed direction when his parents passed away and he used his inheritance to move into the fashion business. He founded the design house Moss Shamask Ltd. in partnership with designer Ronaldus Shamask, specializing in made-to-order linen clothing, before selling the company in 1990. Four years later Moss launched his eponymous design store on Greene Street, filling it with objets d'art like Aalto vases and Kaj Franck glasses. He and partner Franklin Getchell have since expanded to three storefronts and in July 2007 they opened a second location on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. The Moss industrial design mecca has long been famous for its ever-changing merchandise and treating its wares like art objects and bringing a museum sensibility to retail, an attitude reflected in the "Please Do Not Touch" T-shirts worn by employees. [Image via Getty]