Homegrown furniture designers are coming up in a major way, as a new crop of talent enters the scene with fresh ideas and a drive to make their mark.

A number of these local designers showed off their work at this year’s FIND Design Fair Asia, part of Singapore Design Week. The fair, which featured brands from around the world, drew over 11,000 visitors over three days in Marina Bay Sands.

Among the Singaporeans who presented at EMERGE @ FIND — a subsection of FIND dedicated to highlighting Southeast Asian talent — was Karyn Lim, who founded her eponymous studio in 2015. “Design is an exciting field to be in,” the 31-year-old tells Haven, explaining that designers have the potential to “work in collaboration with almost anyone from almost any industry”.

Lim got her start when a piece she designed, called the Transformation Bag, was included in an exhibition of 15 Singapore designers organised by Industry Plus. The exhibition made its way to the Triennale di Milano during Milan Design Week in 2015 and was shown in Singapore as part of Singapore Art Week and Singapore Design Week the next year. “I was a graduating student then,” Lim recalls, adding that the experience was “an encouraging start” to her career.

Today, Studio Karyn Lim is a regular fixture at Asian furniture showcases; Lim also returned to Milan Design Week last year to present at the SaloneSatellite exhibition. At this year’s EMERGE @ FIND, Lim showed a collection of sculptural hand-crocheted baskets made of used plastic bags, as well as tables made of bottle caps and food packaging waste. Each piece in the “So Plast!c” series is unique, thanks to the varying colours and prints of the materials used.

“There’s been growing interest in sustainability, especially when we now feel the effects of global warming,” says Lim, adding that she’s observed more brands with products made from recycled and circular materials. “Consumers are now more open to it and are willing to own and use items made from ‘trash’.”

Besides sustainability, technology and social media have also come to the forefront of furniture design. Frank Quek and Qiuyu Zhao, co-directors of the design studio Calybraid, note that new-age tools have become an increasingly large part of the design world. “There has been a new wave of digital designers … creating highly detailed and immersive interior visualisations that often feature digital furniture pieces,” the duo tells Haven in an email.

Founded in 2022, Calybraid’s work spans architecture, interior design and furniture design. Its “Collection C” series, shown at EMERGE @ FIND, comprises mirror-polished stainless steel pieces with a counterintuitive sense of lightness. “Our approach is bold and experimental,” Quek and Zhao explain. “We see furniture design as a platform to explore and test new ideas, allowing us to push boundaries and refine our vision on a more personal scale.”

Studio Kallang founder Faezah Shaharuddin points out that such daring design philosophies are increasingly relevant for today’s consumers. As millennials and Gen Z age up and gain spending power, the notion of Instagram-ability — once relegated to food and photobooths — is now being applied to just about everything, including furniture. 

“Younger consumers are spending more on trendy statement pieces that look good on camera,” says Faezah, who describes her aesthetic as eclectic and playfully chic. The University of Washington graduate showed a pair of mirrors at EMERGE @ FIND, one with a polished stainless steel frame and the other with a beaded fabric frame.

International competition

Of course, the scene here is still a fledgling one. Singapore’s furniture design industry may be taking off, but a majority of consumers still lean towards products imported from elsewhere. Chief among the exporting countries is Italy, which held a 32.8% market share worth EUR 68.5 million ($97.6 million) in 2023, according to figures from the Italian Trade Agency. 

Giorgio Calveri, the Italian trade commissioner for Singapore and the Philippines, attributes the 14.4% annual growth in Italian furniture exports to the city-state to a “growing middle class in the region, along with rising disposable incomes”. These factors have in turn increased demand for better products, which coincides with Italian furniture’s “reputation for superior quality, innovative design, and craftsmanship”, he adds.

“Consumers here appreciate the aesthetic appeal and the blend of tradition with modernity that Italian brands offer,” Calveri continues. “Features such as sustainable materials, customisable options, and ergonomic design resonate well with the local market. Furthermore, Italian furniture often embodies a sense of luxury and exclusivity, which aligns with the aspirations of many Singaporean consumers.”

Other countries are also catching up. China, the world’s biggest furniture exporter, has not only become home to a number of large-scale, low-cost manufacturers — it’s also developed a burgeoning luxury scene, with higher-end brands such as HC28 inching their way onto the global furniture stage.

Calveri says the Italian industry is sticking to its guns, keeping a steady focus on quality, design and brand heritage. “While international competition has increased, Italian brands differentiate themselves by emphasising artisanal craftsmanship, unique aesthetics, and premium materials,” he adds. “Italian designers are renowned for their innovative approaches and ability to create timeless pieces that resonate globally.”

A deeper commitment to aligning with consumers’ values is also keeping Italian furniture relevant in an increasingly competitive global industry. “Italian manufacturers are committed to ethical production practices, which adds further value in a market that increasingly prioritises sustainability.”

Just like Singaporean brands, Italian furniture labels are keeping pace with changing preferences in the market. “The Italian furniture industry is increasingly embracing technology and sustainability,” Calveri notes. Smart-home technologies, in particular, are a hot topic, he adds, with brands adding such systems to their designs so consumers can adjust their lights, heating and even seat angles from their smartphones.

Still growing

Breaking through as a designer has never been an easy task, but this is especially so in Singapore, where a small market and heavy import reliance make things particularly difficult. 

Lim, whose studio is currently based in her home, says space and accessibility to craft are two other issues she has had to contend with. “A lot of my experiments are limited by the space I have to work within,” she says, adding that she is “slightly envious” of peers in countries with more space and a flourishing local craft scene. “They usually have easier access to craftspeople who are willing to produce their experimental work.”

Faezah, meanwhile, shares that the path to building a business is also not always smooth. “There was definitely a learning curve in the beginning,” she recalls of Studio Kallang’s early days. “As a new brand, we didn’t have much experience navigating representation and negotiating contracts, and so we had to learn on the fly.”

There is some support to help guide those looking to make their mark in furniture design. Fairs such as EMERGE @ FIND, for instance, give young designers an opportunity to showcase their abilities while making connections with others in the field. There are also schemes like the Singapore Furniture Industries Council’s Design Innovation Programme, which provides local talents with opportunities to partner with others and create commercially viable collections.

And even with its challenges, designers here remain optimistic about starting their labels in Singapore. “I think being a homegrown brand gives us a strong sense of identity, cultural nuance and uniqueness that helps us stand out from the noise, even internationally,” says Faezah.

Speaking on the idea of a Singaporean design language, she muses that it’s a matter of reflecting “the unique contradictions” that define the city-state. “Singaporean design has this energy of controlled chaos, blending references from all over the world … It’s refreshing because it feels less restrained than older design scenes that have more established notions of ‘good design’.”

Concurring, Quek and Zhao add that local designers “bring their own unique stories to the table, resulting in a wide variety of styles rather than a singular, identifiable design language”. For the duo, creating a Singaporean voice begins with “being unapologetically true to ourselves”, embracing both the positives and negatives. “It’s about doubling down on cultural elements that might be perceived as flaws and turning them into a design characteristic.” 

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