EVOLUTION OF STORAGE
Today’s consumer wants more functionality and customizable options
The demand for furniture that fits small spaces and serves multiple purposes is growing in North America, says Antoine Roset, executive vice-president of Roset USA, the North American arm of high-end French furniture brand Ligne Roset.
It’s something in which Roset and his family are specialists, having designed for the European market for over 150 years.
“What people are buying is really different from what they were buying before,” he says. “People are a bit more cautious and picky than they were before. Our job is to offer service. We are high end, and that’s what high end does. If you want something, you can get it.”
Ligne Roset is known for its “case goods” products, which include bookcases, sideboards and wall units, designed to look great and provide storage. They now include other functions, such as phone or computer charging, while still maintaining their modern, clean, streamlined esthetic.
The brand’s Book&Look modular wall units, bookcases, shelves and sideboards, designed by Pagnon & Pelhaitre, come in a range of finishes that include an ultra-modern concrete veneer, and now have the option of an induction charger, so people can charge their phones by simply putting them down on the unit. The good old days of hauling the wall unit away from the wall — or fishing around behind it — to plug something in, are now just uncomfortable memories, he says.
“Who wants to see a plug and charger on the sideboard in the middle of your living room?” he says. “But where are you spending your time? We just said OK, let’s connect the sideboard. Let’s make the sideboard the connected part of your living room.”
As well as wanting more functionality from their storage furniture, people are also wanting more customizable options, he says.
“I think we are getting used to much more customization in all industries,” Roset says. “Meaning our industry, it has to evolve, and we have to listen to our public, and when you see what we can do with new shoes, new cars, even your TV today, it was normal for us to want to give more options to our public.”
Ligne Roset’s new Dita collection, designed by Pagnon & Pelhaitre, and new for fall, is a shelving unit that comes with the choice of 16 different colour finishes, the option of drawers, doors, or leaving the unit open, and all scenarios reflecting the brand’s modern, timeless esthetic.
Overcoming difficulties is big part of what they do, Roset says, and that includes bringing to life the vision of talented designers. Peter Maly’s Lines bookcase and sideboard, designed for Ligne Roset, is a good example, he says, notable for its uniquely angled shelving.
“This line is very design oriented,” he says. “It’s quite complex, in terms of manufacturing, and structure, because of all the different parts, and here we can see the commitment of the brand to the designer’s point of view. What we’re willing to do, technically speaking.”
The end result, he says, is the realization of a great designer’s vision, and some incredibly original furniture.
“We are the only one to have this kind of sideboard,” he says.
Furniture design, and production, is changing, says Roset, who was raised in his family’s business, being the great great grandson of Ligne Roset’s founder (of the same name).
“We see a lot more interest in contemporary design,” he says. “And not only the residential aspect of it, but also hospitality, resorts, hotels, and office.”
The trend, says Roset, is an increasing crossover between home, office and hospitality design.
“You really want to feel like you’re at home, even though you’re at the hotel, or when you’re at the office,” he says.