Unfolding new interior design trends at Sri Lanka Design Festival this November

Fine Furniture Co-founders Martin Klement (left) and Niluka Klement

Fine Furniture started in Colombo by the Austrian structural engineer Martin Klement and his partner Niluka Klement. During their first year in Sri Lanka, Klement witnessed the shifts in the local lifestyles and changing demands of the new property owners in Sri Lanka. Answering their needs for specialty home solutions with cutting edge design of international calibre, Fine Furniture was set up by Martin and Niluka Klement. Today, Fine Furniture occupies a niche in the local interior and furniture market by spearheading a new attitude towards living spaces in Sri Lanka. Their portfolio looks impressive with European designer brands like Häcker Kitchens, Bosch, Loddenkemper, Rauch, Koinor, Pacific Green, Miele and Eurographics. 

Looking to share this new way of living with the wider Sri Lankan masses, Fine Furniture partnered with the dedicated local platform for interior design, Sri Lanka Design Festival. In this interview co-founder of Fine Furniture – Austrian structural engineer Martin Klement shares with us the innovation and design that will lead a new lifestyle trend at SLDF next month. Following are excerpts:

Q: You recently partnered SLDF for 2015 to present new innovation in interior design to Sri Lanka. Tell us more about this? 

A: Fine Furniture was born a few years ago when Niluka and I realised how badly designed and non-functional most kitchens in Sri Lanka are and how often they are not tallying with the lifestyles of the modern homeowners. For example, for most young home owners who live in apartments or otherwise, the kitchen is a central part of entertaining where they engage with guests and cook or make drinks at the same time. It’s no longer hidden at a corner or at the back of the house. 

Of course, this means that you need to have a functional kitchen that is as stunning and as modern as your home, reflecting your personal aesthetics. So, Fine Furniture caters to this need and answers the need for great kitchens. Today, we have branched out to include interior product and furniture that represents the new lifestyle of this modern Sri Lankan. And Sri Lanka responded to us exceptionally well because it is a market that value good quality and good design. 

Taking it further, we are now looking to inspire the interior industry with high-end design led product and also share our vision for a higher living quality with a larger group of Sri Lankans. Sri Lanka Design Festival is a good platform to present this to the relevant stakeholders, so this partnership is something that will contribute to an important move towards cutting-edge, design driven interiors in Sri Lanka. 

Q: Why is this important right now? 

A: We live in a very connected world and the Sri Lankan consumers today have a lot of exposure to design innovation via technology and travel etc. So, they are now looking for something beyond the traditional kitchen hidden at the back of the house and spaces that don’t represent themselves. They have agenuine interest and appreciation for superior designed spaces with high quality products and possibilities to customise and create their own unique space while also keeping it eco-friendly and sustainable. So, answering this need is very important. Fine Furniture has the creative network in and outside SL which allows us to lead this change in facilitating interior solutions that appeal to a better informed, educated, modern Sri Lankan. 

Q: You mentioned keeping to growing interest for sustainable design – how does Fine Furniture promote this way of green living?

A: A big criterion for Fine Furniture is to work only with environmentally friendly manufacturers to protect Sri Lanka’s environmental aspect and promote sustainable design as a responsible lifestyle to our clienteles. Our furniture is a testimony to how high-quality furniture that follows PFEC regulations etc., are in fact more durable and a better investment for yourself and the environment.

This way of thinking and living is a big part of our international partners and their designers who take special care when crafting each piece. It is a way of living that the modern Sri Lankan identifies with and we’re proud to embody it and share it with the wider masses at SLDF next month. 

Q: What kind of projects does Fine Furniture handle in Sri Lanka? 

A: Our biggest strength and pride is the world-renowned Häcker Kitchen which really is a revolutionary level of interior product design. With the extremely high demand, we currently handle kitchen projects in apartments, personal homes etc. as well as complete interior solutions from furniture, bedroomsand surfaces to floors. Although we’re currently occupied with over a thousand continuing projects island wide, we have grown our capacity to take on more and collaborate with the hotel and tourism industries while keeping true to our international design standards.

Q: How is your operation handled at international standards in Sri Lanka?

A: Our fantastic team in Sri Lanka has been trained overseas and locally to help our clients to plan their dream space with us and even if you walk into our showroom, you will notice that it is maintained at an international standard catering to a modern Sri Lankan. From the level of customisation where you will never see two identical kitchens or lifestyle furniture pieces, we also provide exceptional aftercare for all ourproducts; we really keep up with world-class work principles. 

I must commend our teamreally keeping to this standard and delivering dream spaces to clients. Some of our designers have started their design roots at AOD which also makes it special for us to show their expertise and creativity at SLDF which is driven by AOD.

Q: Where are your international pieces originated from and can you share some of the designer names behind them?

A: The European roots of Fine Furniture’s partner brands come mostly from Germany; German engineering is known as the best in the world and this is true for our furniture too. Our partners work with international award winning designers like Jan Armgardt (more than 40 international awards, design professor at the FH Coburg and University of Applied Science in Aachen) and Tamara Haerty (expert in architecture and urban studies from the Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg and design professor at University of Coburg). Working with such highly educated designers means that our pieces are developed through serious research on materials, comfort, health and technology. This is what we mean by true innovation in interior product.

Q: When you speak about showcasing true innovation and international trends in interior design, to what extent is it available and affordable to Sri Lankans?

A: Fine Furniture is all about bringing international designer product closer to the local consumer and this means it is within its value. With your home being the place you meet with family and friends daily, it is the place you spend most of your time. Also, the current entertainment culture is so that food doesn’t come to your plate cooked by a maid from a kitchen hidden in the back – today’s Sri Lankans use the kitchen as a central part of their family life and entertaining guests. 

So, the today’s new homeowners understand the extreme importance of having a good kitchen, a good living space and relaxing space within limited spaces. The value they place in this is seen as a one-in-a-lifetime investment that is accepted by the modern clienteles. At SLDF 2015, Fine Furniture is promoting this modern home culture where people invest on long-lasting, quality products with outstanding design, function and performance for their homes for a new way of living.

Q: What do you think makes Fine Furniture or any other interior product become worthwhile on investing and what should people look for when they visit SLDF 2015? 

A: It is a general agreement today that a ‘designer product’ is always more valuable. Why is this? It is because ‘designer product’ means a professional worked on this product thinking through everything from the materials used, the effect it has on the user’s health/posture and the kind of lifestyle the use has- it has been specially created for a purpose by a designer. This kind of product of course speaks for a higher quality in life. At SLDF too, the new interior consumers can begin to start noticing how special products and services are catered to a new way of living.

Q: With this new lifestyle approachat SLDF, what do you hope to contribute to local interior design sector? 

A: We’re setting out to really raise the bar in terms of design and innovation in the Sri Lankan interior product sector. By making it available for designers, architects and the general public and also sharing it on a massive platform like SLDF, we’re working to set a new standard for interior product. I think this is an important contribution for the local interior sector as we’re at a time when the markets, clienteles and their values are changing drastically – a change in standards and design is very necessary.

Q: At SLDF with Fine Furniture, what is there for the general visitor and how do they find out more? 

A: There’s a lot for the general visitor; what we want everyone to visit and witness is what true ‘designer’ interiors mean. It is more than nice colours, expensive material – this is about exceptional storage, flawless function, sustainable material and really high-end design that makes your life a completely different experience. Therefore we have decided to showcase one full display apartment reflecting the modern Sri Lankan lifestyle, in order to bring this experience closer to the public. 

This is all freely open to you all at SLECC. Come visit us, our designers and team will be there to assist you or answer all your questions. You can get a preview into what to expect on our social media facebook.com/FineFurniturePvtLtd and www.finefurniture.lk or by calling 0777 224 655.