Design for the ages

There's a growing pushback against the 'fast' business model, where getting new products to market as quickly and cheaply as possible in response to the latest trends triumphs over sustainability, quality and lasting utility. The most obvious and high-profile example is consumers' rising rejection of 'fast fashion'; but we're seeing similar oppositional 'slow' movements gaining traction in other areas including food, travel, technology – and, yes, furniture. Put simply, people are increasingly choosing quality over quantity, and seeking products they can use over time, not just once then throw away.

This shift to a more thoughtful, ‘intentional’ approach to consumption, based on sustainability, longevity and ethics is, of course, something we wholeheartedly support. For us, the idea of using cheap materials, outsourcing production to lower-wage countries and chasing quantity over quality is, and always has been, anathema. It’s also an attitude close to the hearts of many of our customers. For them, a piece of ercol furniture is almost invariably a carefully considered purchase: indeed, they often describe it as an ‘investment’.

What do they mean by that? In general conversation, ‘an investment’ is usually shorthand for ‘expensive’. It’s certainly true – and we make no apology for it - that our products are priced higher than the ‘fast furniture’ brands. But strictly speaking, an investment is something you put money into now with the expectation of seeing a return on it in the future. And while our furniture undoubtedly holds its value, it’s designed and made to be used every day, not reserved ‘for best’, and in quantities that mean it’s generally not especially rare. Some of our 1950s originals have become genuine collectibles, but regrettably it’ll be a while yet before a Windsor chair fetches Chippendale prices.

The key is that they’re not seeing it as an investment in purely financial terms. What our furniture promises is durability, since it’s made using time-proven craft techniques from materials that last for decades (centuries, in fact, as our descendants may one day discover). Our customers tend to be people who look to buy the right thing first time - and buy it only once. Our furniture also provides long-term usefulness and comfort: in that sense, it’s an investment that provides a real, tangible return, and does so every single day that you own and use it. And with its timeless designs, it’s immune to the vagaries of fashion, which deliberately renders products essentially valueless on a whim, and often overnight.

Even more gratifying, though, is that many customers are not buying our products just for their own immediate use and enjoyment. We know, because they’ve told us, that they love our furniture precisely because they know they will be able to pass it on in due course. That’s partly because they can be sure it will last; but also because our designs have an intrinsic appeal that crosses the generations, and enter a family’s shared experiences and memories. And there is no price you can put on that.

If you have any more questions about caring for your furniture, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.