CUSTOM FURNITURE
Made just for you and only you
Customized furniture fulfills the need to own a distinctive couch, table, chair or bed that is strictly designed with yourself in mind. It’s this very thing that created a market, which according to one report released last year, could be worth upwards of US$ 35 billion by the end of 2025.
As the report notes, the “significant growth in the real estate sector is continuously influencing the demand for luxury furniture across both the residential and commercial sectors. Moreover, manufacturers are coming up with striking new designs of furniture and collaborating with interior designers to increase their visibility to capture a wider customer base.”
Toronto- based Andrew Pike, principal designer of Andrew Pike Interiors, and Jennifer Backstein, founder of Jennifer Backstein Interiors, are two such designers specializing in custom furniture. Both have extensive experience making bespoke pieces for the one per cent.
“It’s always important to start with a site visit and inperson consultation, which has been challenging these last couple of months, but we are muddling through with Zoom and distance meetings,” says Pike. “They hire me to interpret their vision. I really believe it’s a collaborative effort to create a beautiful space for a client.”
As for the clients, he adds, they definitely run the gamut.
“Some know what they want, they have seen your work, they will reference a previous project and ask for something similar to that or they’ve been to someone’s home that you have done and they want something along that vein,” he explains. “Other clients take endless hours to make decisions and really need hand- holding, which my firm is more than happy to provide.”
According to Backstein, the discussion of ideas, designs and concepts is key. The client, in turn, will express what they need or want, and it’s up to her team to figure out how to make their vision come to life.
“I do have clients who have an exact idea of what they want,” she says. “All they need to do is tell us and we put it together. Others give us a concept and we run with it, and create the whole design. That is what I love doing the most because it really gets my creative juices flowing.”
Because custom pieces are tailored to a person’s taste and style, clients aren’t constrained by the limits of retail.
“Anything is possible!” Backstein says. “I am working currently on a 7,000 sq. foot home in King City and we are customizing each space.”
In one example Backstein cites, a client didn’t want their television set to be visible. So her team designed a wall that the television could be built in, with shelves on either side of the wall and closed cabinetry on the bottom. They installed a floating wall to cover the TV when it isn’t in use.
“That is not something you can buy in a store,” she says. “We have customized it to every specification using materials and finishes that are all high end. We get to incorporate metal, lighting and wallpaper and hardware. We have trades that can create beautiful, customized hardware to a client’s specifications. It’s endless, it truly is.”
When money is not an issue, the rules change considerably. Pike adds it all comes down to what the clients value.
“There is status to buying furniture, but when you are building custom, you really are getting a one- off piece,” he says. “You are getting a design just for you. It is like buying art. When the client finds that item that is important to them, they will pay to make it happen.”
As a result of the pandemic, both sides need to be patient due to a supply chain Pike describes as “a complete mess.”
“I ordered a coffee table that was coming from Europe in February,” he explains. “It was supposed to be here in May, that got pushed to August, and now it is scheduled to arrive in November. It really is a case of following the bouncing ball. Everyone is doing the best job they can, but we have pivoted because we are unsure what the second wave will look like, and doing a lot more supplying of materials here in the city.”
There are definite shortages of wood materials and fabrics, says Backstein.
“Recently, I put in an order for a lot of custom fabrics for a client’s home to do her family room, living room and dining room,” she says. “At this point, some of the items are not in stock and it will be a couple of months before we can receive anything.
“We are doing the best we can in these times. People have to be patient and understanding about the fact some things are out of our control. When materials are low in stock or there is something we can’t tackle at the moment, then we’ll concentrate on something else.”