DAVID King first visited Newcastle to help his mother Gwen build their fledgling furniture business at the city's annual home show.
King Furniture, as it was then known, began in 1977 in the Sydney lounge room of Gwen, a natural interior designer who created 'casual furniture' for her home.
"I made the seats out of cut foam pieces, she sewed on stretch covers in bright colours and they formed these beautiful moulded clean shapes," recalls Mr King.
In mid-September, the family's luxe furniture business King Living will expand with a new showroom in the former Audi dealership in Parry Street, Newcastle West.
"Now is perfect timing - the region has come of age and people are very aware of good design," says Mr King.
The timing hinges on two factors: a pandemic that, while causing wide economic hardship, has also created disposable income as people cancel travel; and a desire by those working at home to 'dress up' their surrounds.
"People are appreciating things in their home more and looking for good quality - they don't want to fill it with junk or soulless furniture," he says. "Working from home doesn't necessarily have to be upright at a desk - people can relax on their sofa and many of our sofas have shelving, [device] charging tables, reading lights, they are ergonomically fine for working on a tablet."
King Living, which also makes beds, dining and outdoor furniture, will launch some new models in its new showroom: "One or two are destined to be future classics or icons."
The Australian brand owns and operates manufacturing bases in China and Sydney and retails globally.
"People are demanding high quality but they also want to buy at a fair price ... and we can do that because we control the manufacturing," Mr King says.
The company says its point of difference lies in designing timeless but innovative furniture built to last. It uses steel frames and a suspension system touted to be on par with luxury European cars. Mr King says It is not uncommon for customers who bought a King couch in the '80s to ask the company to reupholster it.
IN THE NEWS:
