Fitout furniture

Hospitality outlets and hotels are looking for design, longevity and currency in their furniture, and it is within this context that the latest designs from around the world are being procured to create a unique – and globally competitive – edge.

Four brands in particular are appealing to the New Zealand market and all are centred around striking colour, design and craftsmanship.

“The Kiwi aesthetic is very raw and natural,” Statement ID’s Lucy Harris says. “It’s a wholesome aesthetic that people are drawn to with a good environmental story in terms of the materiality of products chosen but it’s also about melding these concepts with beautiful design.”

Longevity is important, particularly in hospitality settings where high use is standard. “That’s where TON, a 150-year-old timber furniture brand from the Czech Republic is popular, and Lebello – a Californian outdoor furniture manufacturer – are fitting into the New Zealand market well.”

TON, Lebello and TONIK’s current offerings are al based around vibrant colour and striking design.

“TON’s point of difference is in its stunning fabrics and large range of new lacquer colours and fabrics in the 2018 range,” Lucy says. “The beauty of the TON pieces is also in their timelessness. While they are current, the designs are long-lasting and won’t date.”

In terms of Lebello, its signature materiality is the range of vivid-coloured woven rope shells, which are combined with powder-coated aluminium frames. “Their outdoor furniture collections represent stunning contemporary design, and the pieces are customisable to the extent that the rope and aluminium colours can be chosen for each piece.”

Another brand of note, TONIK, a new outdoor US-based furniture manufacturer, has an offering of vibrant outdoor commercial furniture centred around colour. “This is the first time TONIK has been available in New Zealand,” Lucy says. “Their pieces are contemporary, sculptural visions, often curvaceous in form.” Most TONIK pieces can be illuminated with optional interior LED lighting that shines through the furniture’s polyethylene shell, allowing the pieces to double as luminaires – a particular drawcard for alfresco hospitality settings where features and light are important to set the scene.

It is these types of beautifully manufactured statement pieces that are becoming more and more popular with hospitality fitouts, especially restaurants and hotels around New Zealand.

Statement ID is the exclusive distributor of TON, Lebello and TONIK in New Zealand, while the other arm of its business is focused on furniture, fixture and equipment procurement for commercial projects, especially hotels.

One of its signature projects of late is The Four Points by Sheraton on Queen Street in central Auckland, which opened at the beginning of June 2018. “Across this 260-room hotel they have specified TON and Lebello. TON pieces feature throughout the restaurant and the rooms while Lebello pieces create a stunning visual presence in the outside areas.”

It’s by incorporating these types of cutting-edge designer pieces that New Zealand hotels and hospitality fitouts are gaining global attention.

Get in touch with Statement ID on ArchiPro here or visit their Auckland showroom for some inspiration in designer commercial furniture.