Ligne Roset Thrives in China, Opening a Store Every Three Months

January 18, 2019

Antoine Roset, the fifth generation owner of Ligne Roset, sits on the reissued Bonnie sofa during IMM Cologne.
Antoine Roset, the fifth generation owner of Ligne Roset, sits on the reissued Bonnie sofa during IMM Cologne.

COLOGNE, Germany -- Ligne Roset, the tony French furniture company, expects impressive growth in China, already having opened 25 stores with expectations of a new store about every three months.

Export Manager Bernard Vinson says the upscale, modern furniture has found its niche with Chinese buyers.

During IMM Cologne, the international furniture trade show held January 14-20, the company, which was founded in 1860, showed its latest collections in bold colors and new fabric combinations. Vinson says velvet remains popular, especially those vintage looks from the 1970s, along with leather and thick chenille.

The company hires some 70 freelance designers and releases a new collection, along with fabrics, so it’s constantly inventing something new.

“It’s like a fashion brand (in that respect),” Vinson says, explaining a key to its success.

For example, the company recently reissued Bonnie, originally created by French designer Pierre Paulin in 1975, which has become a bestseller in 2018. It is a cocoon-like sculptural sofa made of foam and available in two upholstery styles. There’s the original “pleated” version, which is available in a variety of wools and nubuck leather, and over 150 color and style options.

The second version is a “plain” reinterpretation of the original design using flat, stretched upholstery with stretch jersey fabric (a wool-polyester-nylon blend), in twelve color options with an overall smooth finish.

The Briord, France, company, which manufactures its modern furniture in factories across the Rhone-Alps region, has over 200 stores and more than 1,000 retail distributors worldwide.

The company was founded by Antoine Roset in 1860, and today is run by fifth-generation-owner Antoine Roset. It remains a private, family-owned company with about 1,000 employees.
 


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