John Stephens & Company is the name of our furniture company, located in Remuera, Auckland, New Zealand.
We were initially located in Parnell, purely as an antiques shop. That was back in 1988, a few short months after the crash of 1987. In 1999 we relocated to our purpose-built store here in Remuera, and in 2018 the company bought a large new warehouse with its own film studio and storage facility to accommodate the business’s expanding storage and marketing needs. The past 34+ years have seen us grow into an iconic decorative furniture brand.
It is a great business and a lot of fun - a passion for fine furniture and seeing customers and staff happy is what motivates us. Everyday is an adventure……
We source the finest quality furniture from England, France & Sweden. Our team of professionals here in Auckland restores, recycles, repurposes & recreates amazing pieces of furniture, no two pieces are identical. Our team ranges from the ever-helpful boys on the Lorry through to our Creative Director - not to mention the restorers, gilders, upholsterers and cabinet makers - some of whom have worked for 30+ years.
It all started with a chance meeting with a third generation Antique Dealer, Mr Green of Sheffield, Yorkshire, whose sister my friend Simon and I picked up in our Kombi van when we were doing a circuit of the US. The romance (she picked Simon, not me) was not destined to last but when I was lonely on the weekends of my electrical engineering career in Brighton, I travelled north to Yorkshire and met Fiona’s brother, Damian Green, who I count among my closest and most trusted friends. The buying began and by the time I was ready to leave England and my engineering career, my parents were already in receipt of two container loads of furniture, dropped on their front lawn in Te Aroha.
The 25 year old John Stephens spent his summers in and out of every National Trust property in the UK, getting an eye for detail and proportion, and the winters in and out of every antique export warehouse in the north of the UK, a boom period for furniture export from England.
Around 1990 we went on a foray to France, to check out the furniture. It was to be the first of many many trips across the Channel, the most recent being during the pandemic in December last year. In 2017 we added Sweden to our calls, sourcing fine Gustavian furniture.
Today, Mr Green’s two sons have joined the procurement team. Julian - with his Masters of Fine Arts, sources us stunning French paintings from the 18th century through to the Impressionist Period and beyond, and James Green, the mid-century specialist, sources Castelli chairs and mid-century classics - Vandel etc
The procurement, transportation and restoration of such beautiful furniture continues to be a source of immense satisfaction. However, over time, we have interlaced old and iconic furniture with a range of new products, some inspired by period pieces, others variations on themes and designs.
Katrina has just designed and supervised the making of our first three-seater sofa - the exceptionally comfortable Jaques. Melanie has designed two of our new lanterns and our Directoire desk and library table. All are found under the JS Editions button on our website.
Our bespoke libraries, bookcases and wine cellars continue to evolve and the range of refectory table options continues to expand, thanks to our talented cabinet maker, Doug Kemp, who has been an integral team member for over 30 years. John Stephens & Company’s reputation was built on the delivery of fine furniture. Nothing has changed, we stand by our ever-expanding range of furniture whether it’s found in the far corners of France or Sweden or designed and built here in Auckland. Our goal is to deliver the finest range of decorative furniture in New Zealand.
We also represent a number of quality European furniture manufacturers - a French bed and chair company, and a stunning lighting company from London’s Pimlico.
Please check out our listed Products or contact us to see if we can source the item you're looking for.
