DELIVERING DESIGN OPULENCE FOR THE DISCERNING TO LAST A LIFETIME

 Clive Christian Furniture is a name synonymous with opulence. Credited with creating the original statementkitchen, the brand was the first to transform this functional room into a luxurious, ornate, living space.

Founded in 1978 from a workshop in Lancashire, the company has grown to become an internationally recognised luxury brand which champions great craftsmanship.

Across all its collections, the brand is able to tailor and personalise designsto fit even the most niche of clientbriefs. Whilst the notion of ‘hyper personalisation’ has been the benchmark and buzzword for what defines luxury in the industry of late, Clive Christian Furniture has championed a bespoke model and approach since inception – be it with understated elegance or a dash of eccentricity – the brand can create anything to fulfil a client’s wishes.

For those who have a Clive Christian room within their home, no project is too ambitious. Case in point being the new Garden Kitchen, launched during summer 2021, a project which started as a private client commission and went on to become the summer’s biggest launch. It is the brand’s first outdoor offering and speaks to the wider desire amongst clients to have seamless living throughout the house.

The Garden Kitchen utilises the brand’s signature materiality, craftsmanship and unparalleled design prowess. It is an ode to the prestige of living life well and a reflection of the true artistry involved in luxury furniture design. Head of Design, Oliver Deadman, expanded on the origin of the new collection, saying;

Deconstructing the processes, materialsand techniques that have gone into creating some of the greatest and most recognisable yachts in the world, Deadman and team analysed what learnings they could transfer to the brand’s first outdoor creation. Leveragingthe skills of the in-house team, The Garden Kitchen cabinetry reflects one of the most identifiable elements in many yachts – the pinstriped deck – created by inlaying ebonised Iroko sections into the door and drawer fronts via marquetry.Further cementing the furniture’s longevity and nautical nuances, the yacht grade decorative hardware includes deck cleat handles, all finished in an elegant mirror polish stainless steel, subtly brandishing the Clive Christian Furniture mark.

 “The brief behind The Garden Kitchen was unlike any other previously undertaken. It required both the design and workshop teams to think about the performance of the product in an entirely new environment, one subject to the elements.”

 Whilst The Garden Kitchen is the brand’s first foray into the outdoor space, many of the company’s projects are full home ‘multi-room’ solutions. “It usually starts with the kitchen,” says Phil Cole, GlobalSales Director, “but then goes on to become the study, dressing rooms, bathrooms, libraries, bars and now outdoor kitchens. Given the highly personalised nature of what we do, we can design any of our collections to suit the client brief, be it the smallest room in the house or a grand ballroom.”

Clive Christian Furniture has garnered a number of equally renowned global luxury partners throughout the decadesfrom natural affiliations in the sector, such as partnerships with Sub Zero & Wolf, through to diamond brands, champagne houses and royal warrant holding makers and suppliers.

The brand’s champagne partner, Louis Roederer, led to Deadman finding the inspiration for a new specialist finish. Effervesce will launch as part of a new collection of cabinetry entitled ‘The New Classical’. Inspired by the bubbles found in a glass of Louis Roederer champagne, the finish is one of the two new designs to launch imminently.

The New Classical is the first major interior cabinetry collection for Clive Christian Furniture for a number of years. “It is our take on contemporary,” said Deadman. “It wouldn’t suit the brand to go for plain fronted, high gloss designs, it’s not what we’re known for. The challenge was to maintain our signature boldness and embody scale, grandeur and opulence, whilst being simplified.”

 The New Classical maintains the principles of classical architecture – elegant, balanced, symmetrical and strictly proportioned. Sleek, straight lines nod to modern and contemporary, juxtaposed with new materials, textures and finishes creating the opulence, scale and grandeur for which Clive Christian Furniture is famed.

The first design to be launched within The New Classical collectionis Opus No 1, to be released in Spring 2022. This sees the return of the statement island, one of the interiors world’s most enduringly glamorous features, topped with a magnificent statement chandelier, the design would not be complete without one.

As a brand, Clive Christian Furniture works towards the model of conscious luxury and in 2021 it took further steps to achieve a better environmental and sustainable footprint. The first premium brand within its arena to sign up to both The Used Kitchen Exchange in the UK and Renovation Angel in the US, it is leading the way and encouraging others to follow suit. These partnerships allow and encourage clients to not simply rip out and replace new for old, but to sell the existing kitchen on and either donate or use the sale value against the cost of their new kitchen. On average,the re-use of each kitchen saves six tonnes of carbon which equates to approximately one complete year of being carbon neutral for a family of four.

As the originator of the British luxury statement kitchen, Clive Christian Furniture is committed to honouring provenance, craftsmanship and use of authentic materials as its guiding ethos.

 Additionally, the brand continues to evolve its commitment to sustainable and responsible practice through only using traceable materials with a documented source of origin, and designing products that stand the test of time.

Closer to home, Clive Christian Furniture has always looked to the immediate area when it comes to supporting local business and hiringlocally too. In 2021, they launched their new Apprentice Academy, which saw them hire four local students. Currently employing over 60 people from the community, the new recruits joined the growing team, developing skills in veneering, marquetry, leatherwork, cabinetry and woodworking. 

So, as the brand enters its next chapter, it remains unwavering in its commitment to deliver imagination-based, highly personalised and infinitely opulent designs for the world’s greatest addresses. And we can’t wait to see what they do next.