Lockdown has given UK furniture manufacturers a unique opportunity to demonstrate that their products are as good as anything produced in Germany or Italy, according to Whiteleaf Furniture md Ben Algate.
Speaking on the latest episode of The kbbreview Podcast, Algate said that “if this isn’t the time for the UK manufacturers to stand up and actually be counted, then I’m not sure when there will be one.”
Whiteleaf operates in the contract market, supplying housing developers and many other areas of the construction market. It is one of the oldest furniture makers in the UK, celebrating 150 years this year.
“Talking to a lot of the big developers that I deal with, over the years the pressure has been to name check whether it’s an Italian kitchen or it’s a German kitchen. They wanted a European kitchen because they felt that was the requirement.
“If you weren’t specifically buying a handmade Wilkinson/Smallbone-style kitchen then it was almost like the UK were poor relatives. Nowadays though there’s a lot of people in the UK that are manufacturing very good kitchens and I’m hoping, now that the developers hand is forced, that there is an opportunity for the UK to stand up and say ‘we do this and we do it well’.
“I think it would be nice for UK manufacturing, within the furniture Industries, to be recognised as standing alongside our colleagues in Germany and Italy and I think now is the time for us to demonstrate that we actually have the capability to do just that. “
You can hear the full interview on the latest episode of The kbbreview Podcast by clicking here or by searching ‘kbbreview’ in your podcast app.