Lounge22
Handcrafted American furniture, right from the heart of Los Angeles.
LIKE ANY GOOD SOURCE OF INSPIRATION, THE CONCEPT FOR LOUNGE22 CAME OUT OF A UNIQUE NEED. Armen Gharabegian, an inventor and industrial designer, was in need of high quality and beautifully designed furniture for the events his company, Ethos Design, was producing. In response, he launched Lounge22 in 2004—using the date of his son’s birthday as part of his new company’s name.
“I think MIDCENTURY IS TIMELESS because of the MARRIAGE OF FORM AND FUNCTION. It’s sculptural enough to withstand the test of time and does not go out of fashion; it’s sustainable by design.”
FULL CIRCLE DESIGN
Tackling furniture design is anything but a stretch for Armen. The Principal Designer and Founder of Lounge22 graduated from Pasadena’s Art Center College of Design, with both his Bachelor’s and Master of Science Degrees in Industrial Design. “After graduation, I taught furniture design and exhibit design at Art Center for several years while building my first company, Ethos Design,” he says.
Ethos Design provides design and fabrication solutions for exhibits as well as design coordination for events across the United States and abroad. Even just a few years into this work led Armen to notice a lack of high-end, high-quality rental furniture for the events he was producing—so he decided to make it himself.
LOCAL PRIDE
“It has always been important for us to design and manufacture innovative, high-quality furniture in the United States for the American consumer,” Armen says.
“We have had a long tradition of innovation in this country, and it was personally important for me to push the American product, built by American ingenuity, quality and craftsmanship for both the American consumer and eventually the global market. I want to see products around the world with labels that say ‘Made in America.’”
For Armen, one of the things that makes Lounge22 stand out among other furniture companies is that it is a true Los Angeles brand. Not only is their showroom located in neighboring Glendale, but their manufacturing takes place in the city as well. According to Armen, over 10 years ago Lounge22 was one of the first to use the term “handcrafted in LA.”