Outdoor furniture was out in force at the recent Maison& Object and IMM Cologne furniture fairs, as brands responded to a big increase in customer demand. We pick out 10 of the best new designs, including rugs, shelving and a kitchen.
The two fairs saw many established brands launch outdoor furniture collections for the first time, like contemporary Danish brand Muuto, which unveiled the Linear table and bench.
"Venturing into the outdoor furniture category is something that we've been wanting to do for a long time," explained design director Christian Grosen. "The demand has definitely been there," added PR manager Katrin Fieseler.
Response "very positive" to outdoor shelves
It's not only simple tables and seating on offer ? many brands are offering furnishings not traditionally found in the garden. One example is heritage brand String, which has adapted its famous shelving system for the outdoors. "We started to get a lot of requests for bigger shelves that could be used outdoors and we realised that, with some adjustments, the metal range would work perfectly," said Peter Erlandsson, co-owner of String Furniture. "The response was very positive when we launched at IMM."
Rugs "even more important" outdoors
New outdoor textiles are also being developed making it easier than ever to bring soft furnishings into the garden.
According to Nani Marquina, founder of the eponymous rug company, the introduction of ...