Producing furniture can have a positive impact on people and planet, according to Marie Cudennec Carlisle of Goldfinger, a design brand whose business model includes recycled materials, a training academy and a community kitchen.
Based in the Ernö Goldfinger-designed Trellick Tower in west London, Goldfinger is a furniture maker that operates as a social enterprise and promotes a circular economy.
It manufactures bespoke furniture for clients including Inhabit Hotels and co-living brand Mason + Fifth, and has just launched its first in-house designed furniture range, the Ayrton Collection. It also operates a retail platform, selling products by like-minded brands.
Marie Cudennec Carlisle is CEO and co-founder of Goldfinger
The company uses only recycled or sustainably sourced wood, to reduce its carbon footprint and minimise waste. All profits are fed back into the business ? used to fund Goldfinger Academy, which offers education programmes for marginalised young people, and People's Kitchen, a cafe that offers free meals to local residents. But Cudennec Carlisle, Goldfinger's CEO, doesn't want the brand to be defined by its sustainable credentials. She believes it's more important for people to love the products for their design than for their social and environmental impact.
"It's about creating beautiful objects that don't look recycled," she told Dezeen.
"I want someone to say, 'I want that table', even if they are not interested in people or planet...