An ex-Birchbox executive is looking to bring radical transparency to furniture buying, and it’s about time.
This Furniture Startup Wants You To Meet The Craftsman Who Made Your Sofa
From Mexico To Mississippi: Why This Sofa Startup Is Now “Made In The USA”
Burrow’s sofa cleverly offers consumers a semblance of choice without straying from a standard set of component parts. Each sofa is built with the same two end pieces; in between, consumers can add as many seats as they wish.
Furniture that looks like Fast Food
For the Italian brand Seletti's upholstered furniture debut they've once again partnered with the whimsical design firm Studio Job and the result is certainly eye-catching (and arguably mouth-watering). This new pop culture saturated "UN_LIMITED EDITIONS" line draws inspiration from fast food. In a nod to Americana, there's a sofa in the form of a hot dog bun, complete with a comfortable upholstered sausage inside.
Hem Founder Petrus Palmér on the Design Industry's Radical Changes
Knoll Names Rick Kilmer President, HOLLY HUNT to Work with Company Founder
Knoll, Inc., announced that HOLLY HUNT, the Company’s Chicago-based luxury brand, has named Rick Kilmer as President.
Mr. Kilmer succeeds David Schutte who was named Executive Vice President – Specialty Businesses, earlier this year. In addition to HOLLY HUNT, the Knoll specialty businesses include the following design-driven brands, steeped in the precepts of modernism: KnollStudio, KnollTextiles, Spinneybeck I FilzFelt, Edelman Leather and DatesWeiser.
J.Crew Hires West Elm President as CEO
Jim Brett, president of Williams-Sonoma’s fast-growing West Elm brand, has resigned to become CEO of J.Crew.
Williams-Sonoma (NYSE: WSM) said Alex Bellos, the head of the company’s Rejuvenation and Mark and Graham brands, will succeed Brett, effective immediately.
Jasper Morrison expands wood and steel furniture collection for Maruni
Subtle shapes of letters peek out from British designer Jasper Morrison's newly expanded T&O furniture collection for Japanese brand Maruni.
Ori Systems brings the robotic furniture of the future to apartments today
Showrooming in luxury real estate developments all over the country, Ori is debuting its new, modular, and gorgeous-looking furniture that enables city-dwellers to do more with less space (I want one. Now.)
The product of research from MIT’s famous Media Lab, Ori launched in 2015 as a way to spin out research being conducted by MIT professor Kent Larson and graduate student Hasier Larrea.
The Egon Collection of Furniture for Lounge Spaces from Alki
Created by design duo Iratzoki Lizaso for Alki, the Egon Collection of furniture consists of a sofa system, coffee tables, and poufs perfect for any type of lounge space. While each has their own distinct look, the three different designs are made to work together seamlessly for ultimate relaxation. Each piece is stripped of extraneous adornment to keep their silhouettes simplified and fairly minimalist, while still remaining aesthetically pleasing for all the modern design lovers out there.
You can now buy the iconic Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman at CostCo
It’s one of the most iconic pieces of mid-century modern architecture — and you can get it now at CostCo (provided you’re a member).
For just $3,899.99 you can get one yourself (with free shipping!). That might seem steep, but it’s a solid $1,407 less than you’d get if you bought directly from Herman Miller.
The Elusive Dream Of Affordable, Flat-Pack Furniture
We all want affordable, high-quality, easy-to-ship furniture. So why is it so hard to find? Startups are continually trying to innovate in an industry long dominated by Ikea, but none has come close to being a formidable competitor to the Swedish giant. They’re wildly ambitious, but rarely live up to the hype. We took a look at three companies built on similar premises—modern, affordable, direct-to-consumer furniture—at different stages in their trajectory to better understand why.
Ariake Collection by Legnatec and Hirata Chair
Ariake Collection is a series of minimal furniture created by a joint venture between Legnatec and Hirata Chair, two factories from the furniture-producing town of Morodomi in Saga prefecture, Japan. Ariake means “morning moon” or “daybreak” in Japanese, and symbolizes a new chapter for Legnatec and Hirata Chair, two leading companies in a twon consisting of more than thirty furniture factories.
Khodi Feiz Continues Collaborating with Artifort
With several years of successful collaborations with Artifort under his belt, designer Khodi Feiz continues the tradition with new releases for 2017. The pieces debuted with Artifort at Salone del Mobile, the perfect launchpad for new work.
Philippe Starck Presents Solid Oak Torquemada Collection for Driade
salone del mobile 2017: Driade invited several designers to interpret the theme ‘revolution’ for their presentation at the furniture fair in Milan- one of them being philippe starck. the ‘torquemada’ collection features a family of oak furniture consisting of a table, chair, an armchair and stool and additionally, the french designer has added the ‘lou speak bergere’ to the lou collection which was presented last year.
Designer Tom Dixon Unveils His ‘Secret’ Project With Ikea
As snow swirled through Manhattan this month, the British designer Tom Dixon found himself in a cozy spot above it all, standing atop a twin-size bed with a dozen nervous students at the Parsons School of Design in Greenwich Village.
Dressed in a charcoal suit, Mr. Dixon was trying to make a radical point: that Ikea, the Swedish furniture giant known for beds and dressers that are so inexpensive they are often perceived as being disposable, could manufacture a collection of affordable, heirloom-quality pieces to last a lifetime.
Greycork, furniture startup, says it's 'winding down operations'
Greycork, a furniture startup based in Providence, Rhode Island, that sought to create a stylish, easy-to-assemble alternative to Ikea, appears to be closing up shop, according to an email sent to Curbed.
This startup wants to make customized, American-made furniture affordable
Maiden Home, founded by Nidhi Kapur, partners with artisans and family-owned factories in North Carolina to create high-quality furniture customized to the buyers specifications. But because the brand designs in-house and sells products on its own website, without going through a retailer, it is able to charge $2,000 for a fully personalized sofa and $900 for an armchair, which is on par with brands like West Elm. Products are then delivered directly to the consumer's house, at no additional charge.
Alvar Aalto's iconic Stool 60 gets cool-kid cred from streetwear brand Supreme
Calling all hypebeasts looking to furnish your pads: This is the collaboration you didn’t know you’ve been waiting for. That’s because you never truly understood what was lacking in your lives—until now.
That missing piece would be the iconic (and much copied) Stool 60 by master Finnish designer Alvar Aalto that now features a checkerboard-patterned seat by New york cult sportswear brand (and hypebeast favorite) Supreme.
Why is this necessary, you might ask? We don’t really have an answer ourselves, but think of the three-legged piece of furniture as the ubiquitous checkered slip-on Vans sneakers, but in stool form.
The shoe’s design is timeless, but in a solid color, it could also be a little boring. Getting a pair in the checkerboard pattern, however screams cool, edgy, and so punk-rock.
What would double-digit import tariffs mean to the furniture business?
The suggestion last week that the Trump administration might seek a 20% tariff on Mexican imports lasted only hours before an administration spokesman began walking it back. Instead, the President’s press secretary indicated a tariff was only one potential solution and intimated that 20% could actually be less, maybe even 5%.
Despite that, there is increasing speculation within the industry that some form of import tax, tariff or other price adjustment is a real likelihood in the coming months. And not just on Mexico.
For example, one such adjustment being bandied about — and admittedly there is little publicly available information at this point — is a 25% tariff on imports out of Asia. Whether this is simply the furniture industry rumor mill running on overdrive or one of those not infrequent cases where reality and rumor intersect remains to be seen.
However, given President Trump’s active first week attempting to deliver on campaign promises, it is not unreasonable to believe he will attempt to follow through on his promise to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. and rebalance the trade scales to strengthen American companies.
Ikea encourages furniture hacking with its new modular sofa
For as long as time, people have been reinterpreting Ikea furniture with their wildest imaginations, creating everything from an Ikea Eames Lounge Chair to a boisterous coworking space to all kinds of oddities in between. And now, the Swedish retailer wants to be a part of that action.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Ikea plans to start selling a modular sofa in 2018 that’s intended to be “hacked” with add-ons—like apps on a smartphone. For those following Ikea closely, the Delaktig sofa would be the first product from the much-teased “top secret” collaboration with British designer Tom Dixon.
Billed as a mid-range option priced between $399 and $899, the flatpack Delaktig sofa is made of an extruded aluminum frame that’s 40 percent recycled and a wood-slat base. The design will allow for easy clip-ons like a lamp, side table, armrests, and more. It would also welcome whatever hacks third-party designers can think of.