Ariake is a Japanese furniture brand, founded through the joint initiative of Legnatec and Hirata Chair — two established furniture factories from the small town of Morodomi in Saga Prefecture (southern Japan), a traditional furniture-producing region on Kyushu island. The name refers to the Ariake Sea in southern Japan and means "daybreak" in Japanese — symbolising a new chapter for both companies. The brand and its designs were created during several intensive multi-day workshops in Morodomi, where furniture designers, an art director, a photographer and craftsmen literally lived, worked and ate together. Despite language barriers, a collective trust emerged that defined the soul of the brand.
The result was a collection of initially 30 designs combining Japanese craft techniques with contemporary international design. Materials: oak, ash, hinoki, cedar, leather, paper cord, cotton canvas, upholstery, and unique finishes including sumi (ink painting technique) and aizome (indigo dyeing). Designers: Anderssen & Voll (Norway), Gabriel Tan (Singapore), Keiji Ashizawa (Japan), Norm Architects (Denmark), Note Design Studio (Sweden), Shin Azumi (Japan), Staffan Holm (Sweden), Zoe Mowat (Canada), Studio MK27 (Brazil). Art direction: AnnerPerrin; photography: Sebastian Stadler. The collection covers chairs, tables, sideboards, cabinets, beds, shelving, mirrors and room screens. First international appearance outside Asia: Stockholm Design Week, exhibition "A quiet reflexion".
For architects and interior designers, Ariake is the address when authentic Japanese craft quality combined with an international design network and a timeless Japandi aesthetic is sought for residential and hospitality projects.
Asplund is a Swedish furniture and carpet brand, founded in Stockholm in 1990 by brothers Michael Asplund (art dealer) and Thomas Asplund (banker). The founders' unconventional backgrounds brought a fresh perspective to the industry: treating and exhibiting furniture as works of art. Architect Jonas Bohlin designed the original Asplund Gallery (concrete floors, whitewashed walls — the quintessence of Scandinavian light), where works by Bohlin, John Kandell and Thomas Sandell were shown. Creative Director Sandra Adrian Asplund joined the team in 1995. In its early years, the Asplund Collection was presented under the joint name SWECODE (Swedish Contemporary Design) at international design fairs in Stockholm, Cologne and Milan — together with BOX, CBI, David Design and Forminord. Today the Asplund Store at Sibyllegatan 31 (Östermalm, Stockholm) is a global design attraction, recommended by Visit Sweden and Wallpaper magazine.
Design partnerships: Thomas Sandell (including Wedding Stool, 1990; Snow storage system, 1993/1994 — still a bestseller), Jonas Bohlin, Tom Dixon, Jasper Morrison, Marc Newson, Piero Lissoni, Broberg & Ridderstråle, Claesson Koivisto Rune. Product categories: storage systems (Snow, Tati, Frame), side tables, dining tables, desks, seating, benches, rugs (inspired by Turkish and Swedish traditions, produced in India). Manufacturing: almost entirely in Sweden; rugs the historical sole exception, produced in India. Asplund now also offers interior services for architects and interior designers (ASPLUND STUDIO).
For architects and interior designers, Asplund is the clearly profiled Swedish brand at the intersection of gallery and furniture manufacturer — with over 35 years of design history, a consistently curated collection and a clear commitment to quality manufacturing in Sweden.
Artifort is a Dutch furniture manufacturer, founded in 1890 by Jules Wagemans in Maastricht as an upholstery workshop. His son Henricus Wagemans built the family business into a full furniture factory; by the late 1920s the company had a showroom in Amsterdam and an established reputation in the Dutch market. In 1928 the brand name Artifort was introduced — derived from the Latin "ars" (art, knowledge) and "fortis" (strong, powerful), with a simultaneous echo of the English word "comfort". The technical breakthrough of the 1930s came with a licence for the Epeda spring system: an interior springing woven from a single steel wire that provides greater comfort, higher durability and shorter production times compared to conventional springs. Until the 1950s Artifort manufactured classic wooden furniture; the first design shift came with the Pinguïn and Congo chairs, designed by Theo Ruth, who had joined as head of design in 1939.
The decisive turning point in company history was the appointment of interior architect and furniture designer Kho Liang Ie in 1958 as aesthetic consultant. Kho Liang Ie designed the new Artifort logo, built the company's international designer network and in 1959 recruited the French designer Pierre Paulin. Paulin developed a new production technique: tubular steel frames are upholstered with foam and covered with a seamless one-piece stretch fabric — a manufacturing principle that replaces the upholsterer with nails in the mouth with industrially crafted organic form. From this method emerged Paulin's iconic designs: Mushroom (F560, 1963 — today in the Permanent Collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York), Orange Slice, Tongue, Tulip, Ribbon (F582, 1965 — tubular steel, foam, elastic fabric cover), F577. British designer Geoffrey D. Harcourt also joined in this era and developed an extensive collection for the international contract market, driving Artifort's worldwide growth through the 1960s and 1970s. The 1970s and 1980s brought designs by Nel Verschuuren, Bruno Ninaber van Eyben, Gijs Bakker and Jeremy Harvey; the 1990s saw Artifort collaborate with Jasper Morrison, Wolfgang Mezger, René Holten and Jan Pesman. During this decade ownership changed three times: in 1990 to Steelcase Strafor, in 1994 to Samas, in 1998 to Lande Group (Schijndel, Netherlands) — under whose ownership the company has remained to this day.
Since 1998 Artifort has produced at three of its own locations: Schijndel (NL, headquarters and furniture manufacturing), Lanaken (Belgium, upholstery expertise) and Bursa (Turkey). Over 170 specialists — upholsterers, welders, cabinetmakers, seamstresses — work at the intersection of industrial precision and handcrafted finishing. In the 2000s and 2010s new collaborations were added: Patrick Norguet, Claesson Koivisto Rune, Luca Nichetto, Monica Förster, Ilse Crawford. Since 2003 the Iranian-American designer Khodi Feiz has worked for Artifort; in 2014 he was appointed the company's Art-Director to guide the brand's creative direction. Feiz designs: Extens (cabinet programme, aluminium corner elements + wood panels), Bras, Beso (chair, armchair, bar stool — with concealed zip cover system), Balans, Gap, Figura (modular sofa system — selectable arm heights, chaise longue options, electrification, two seat heights). Artifort furniture is represented in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art (New York) and the Centre Pompidou (Paris), as well as the Victoria & Albert Museum (London) and the Vitra Design Museum (Weil am Rhein).
For architects and contract planners, Artifort is the most complete Dutch address for organically shaped upholstered furniture of museum standing — with a 135-year company history that produced both the stretch-cover system and the modular sofa of the 21st century, and a production system that combines the craft art of upholstery with industrial manufacturing across two company-owned centres of competence in Schijndel and Lanaken.
Aster Cucine is an Italian premium kitchen manufacturer, founded in 1983 in Pesaro (Province of Pesaro-Urbino, Marche) by the Del Prete family. Listed on Archiproducts at the Villa Fastiggi (Pesaro/PU) address. The company produces entirely in Italy (Made in Italy) and treats its kitchens as individual architectural projects — bespoke production is therefore central to the offering: every kitchen is adapted to the client's specific requirements. The North American market was entered in 2000, with the first showroom in Boston; the brand is now represented in New York, Miami, Dallas, Boston and Chicago. Aster Cucine collaborates with renowned international designers and architecture studios, including Workshop/APD (New York, Timeline collection).
The range covers a broad stylistic palette: Modern (Avenue, Contempora), Traditional, Factory, Transitional and Luxury Glamour — all collections fully configurable. Materials: lacquer, wood veneer, glass, metal, natural stone. Production details: ceramic lacquering, precise wood selection, high-quality fittings. Collections on Archiproducts: Atelier, Avenue, Brera Academy, Contempora, Factory, Luxury Glam, Outdoor, Portrait, Timeline. The sustainability commitment is explicit: Aster Cucine is guided by the natural principle that there is no such thing as waste — all materials should return to the cycle at the end of their life.
For architects, interior designers and developers of prestige residential projects, Aster Cucine is the premium kitchen alternative for individual, architecturally conceived bespoke production from Pesaro — with particular strength in the North American and international luxury segment.
Arrital is an Italian kitchen manufacturer, founded in 1979 in Fontanafredda (Province of Pordenone, Friuli-Venezia Giulia). The company holds a 100% Made in Italy certification (Institute for the Protection of Italian Manufacturers) — one of the few companies in the sector to carry this recognition. Since 2004, architect Franco Driusso (Driusso Associati) has held the art direction; a comprehensive rebranding followed in 2011, with Milan as the international springboard. Today Arrital is part of the Italian WeDo Holding Group and present in over 40 countries through a dealer network, showrooms and flagship stores. Milan flagship: Corso Europa 22 (conceived by AMDL CIRCLE, the studio of Michele De Lucchi, in collaboration with Franco Driusso).
Core range: Ak_Project (complete system, design Franco Driusso, modular structure, monolithic aesthetic for open-space environments, selectable finishes for doors, worktops and inner shells — drawn from the extensive Arrital materioteca; Archiproducts Design Award 2024 Kitchen), AkB_08 (design Franco Driusso in collaboration with Michelin-starred chef Andrea Berton; ADI Design Index 2017, Compasso d'Oro honourable mention 2018), Nautila (DNA Paris Design Award 2024). GEM display cabinet with LED profiles, Focus On lighting system. The Arrital furniture system extends into the living area, enabling seamless kitchen-living compositions.
For architects and interior designers in international contract and high-end residential project work, Arrital is the clear choice when contemporary design kitchens from north-east Italy are required — with an international design network, a proven award history and seamless open-space integration.