Enterprises
from «thonet 14» by giovanni renzi, silvana editoriale
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THE PRICE OF THE FAMOUS NO. 14 CHAIR REMAINED UNCHANGED
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The Gebrüder Thonet brand has become an established icon primarily for its beech bentwood furniture. Thonet’s invention was patented in the first half of the twentieth century and subsequently copied and produced around the world. The famous Viennese manufacturer added a new chapter to its history when Poltrona Frau was transferred from Charme (its Italian parent company since 2001) to the American brand Haworth. The change in ownership did not include Gebrüder Thonet, prompting the survival of this symbol of European industrialisation and a new course for the Austrian branch. Emblematically, the brand’s core values - product innovation and renewal - have clearly been diluted over the years. Analysing the changes in ownership that have characterised the company’s history, it is possible to see how it has drifted away from a production based on artisan and industrial research and development (as established by its founder, Thonet), to an approach governed by the interests of shareholders and investors, reflecting the economic policy of market globalisation. Gebrüder Thonet’s exit from the Charme Group is not surprising if we consider that Poltrona Frau’s management always regarded it as a prestigious investment, given the renown of the brand, showing no true desire
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to revive its production. As a matter of fact, with the exception of an initial launch of a series of re-issues, production has steadily dwindled over the years, with very limited investments in promotion and advertising. Gebrüder Thonet became a group within the group, practically abandoned and left to its own devices. The Friedberg plant, in Austria, was shut down a few years after the acquisition, and even the museum owned by Thonet Vienna, a unique collection with extremely rare pieces, has been abandoned for a long time. So it comes as no surprise that in 2014 the company was sold to its current Italian owner, Production Furniture International S.p.A. (located in Brandizzo, near Torino), which has relaunched the company under a new brand: Wiener GTV Design (GTV being the acronym for Gebrüder Thonet Vienna). The development plan elaborated by the new company shows that the perspective is changing. The production of re-issues (originally undertaken by Poltrona Frau) has recommenced and the “RE Classic” and “RE Master of Vienna” collections, which focus on the brand’s vintage lines, will be continued and further developed with the collaboration of architect Giovanni Renzi (a European specialist in Thonet production), to guarantee the authenticity of the original products. In the
05/03/15 18:00