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The Furniture Industry in Ostwestfalen‐Lippe and Southern Sweden

Pernilla S. Rafiqui, Martin Schröder, Örjan Sjöberg, Helmut Voelzkow, and Colin Crouch

in Innovation in Local Economies: Germany in Comparative Context

This chapter juxtaposes governance of the furniture industry in Ostwestfalen–Lippe and southern Sweden to the characteristics of the German and Swedish ‘models’, respectively, in order to determine ... More

This chapter juxtaposes governance of the furniture industry in Ostwestfalen–Lippe and southern Sweden to the characteristics of the German and Swedish ‘models’, respectively, in order to determine whether these regional sectors have been typical of their national cases; and, if not, whether any deviance from a model can be seen to have embodied a productive incoherence. It shows that the Swedish furniture industry is rather different from its counterpart in Germany, where incoherences appeared to be a disadvantage, while success included an ability to make use of the national institutional infrastructure. It might well be then, that the key to success for the German cluster, consists in shielding itself from erosion of aspects of the German model, which are taking place at the national level.Less

Manufacturing Production Chains and Wholesaling

in Chicago Made: Factory Networks in the Industrial Metropolis

This chapter begins with three case studies illustrating the role of distribution in the functioning of the production chain: furniture manufacture provides a portrayal of an industry's web of ... More

This chapter begins with three case studies illustrating the role of distribution in the functioning of the production chain: furniture manufacture provides a portrayal of an industry's web of networks and intricate set of institutional arrangements; the business mart in the 1920s highlight its role in linking the local, regional, and national scales; and the metalworking industries depict the place of Chicago's wholesaling complex in the development of the metropolitan production chain. The discussions then cover Chicago's furniture production chain; the American furniture mart and business marts in the 1920s; Chicago's wholesalers in the interwar period; and Chicago's steel industry.Less

Knowledge Dynamics in Export Shows: The Affirmation of the Italian Furniture Industry

Harald Bathelt, Francesca Golfetto, and Diego Rinallo

in Trade Shows in the Globalizing Knowledge Economy

This chapter explores the history of Salone del Mobile, an international furniture trade show in Milan that is now recognised as the industry's leading event, despite its origins as an export show ... More

This chapter explores the history of Salone del Mobile, an international furniture trade show in Milan that is now recognised as the industry's leading event, despite its origins as an export show for Italian manufacturers. Using a longitudinal research design, this chapter illustrates how the event was able to affirm local/national industries, products, and styles by improving knowledge sharing practices among exhibitors, linking furniture making to design, and attracting international media coverage. Since the 1990s, the trade show has also spun off hundreds of spontaneous cultural and commercial events in Milan that extend well beyond the confines of the exhibition centre and attract designers and other trendsetters. These fringe events create a vibrant cultural environment that provides further opportunities to learn about emerging trends in design and consumer culture.Less

From Forest to Furniture Boutique

Stephen F. Siebert

in The Nature and Culture of Rattan: Reflections on Vanishing Life in the Forests of Southeast Asia

This chapter explains how rattan from remote tropical forests lands in furniture boutiques in Europe and North America. The journey along this commodity chain begins in rain forests: in the ... More

This chapter explains how rattan from remote tropical forests lands in furniture boutiques in Europe and North America. The journey along this commodity chain begins in rain forests: in the dipterocarp forests of Sumatra and Borneo, in the mountains of Sulawesi, or in many other rattan-gathering grounds in Asia and Africa where cane is collected to meet the demands of the furniture industry. Rattan collecting entails excursions along mountain valleys and slopes in search of marketable cane—that is, canes of the desired species, length, and quality. This chapter discusses the path that rattan canes travel from tropical forests to urban markets as well as the steps involved in processing rattan canes for use in furniture making.Less

Historical and Current Uses of Rattan

Stephen F. Siebert

in The Nature and Culture of Rattan: Reflections on Vanishing Life in the Forests of Southeast Asia

This chapter discusses the historical and current uses of rattan. Rattan is one of the world's most important and widely used nontimber forest products (NTFPs). It has probably been utilized for as ... More

This chapter discusses the historical and current uses of rattan. Rattan is one of the world's most important and widely used nontimber forest products (NTFPs). It has probably been utilized for as long as humans have lived in the tropical forests of Asia and Africa. Rattan's unsurpassed social and economic value is evident in the age-old trade of dragon's blood (dyes and medicines extracted from various species of Daemonorops) and in the multibillion-dollar international cane-furniture industry. Some of the more common uses of rattan include binding, basketry, food, bridge construction, resins, dyes, leaflets for cigarette papers, leaves chewed to expel intestinal worms, roots used to treat syphilis, and rachises as fishing poles. The strength, flexibility, resilience, and durability of rattan cane, for example, make it a highly valued material for binding. Changes in domestic and international tastes, market demands, and supplies are affecting the ways rattan products are used and traded.Less

‘What's that poor creature doing here?’: the area and the fortress before the Revolution of 1789

in The Place de la Bastille: The story of a quartier

Prior to the French Revolution of 1789, the quartier consisted of two buildings that represented the two major seats of power in pre-modern France: the State and the Roman Catholic Church. In 1198, a ... More

Prior to the French Revolution of 1789, the quartier consisted of two buildings that represented the two major seats of power in pre-modern France: the State and the Roman Catholic Church. In 1198, a residence for repentant prostitutes was constructed on the site of what is now the Hôpital Saint-Antoine and became a Cistercian abbey in 1204. The abbey was conferred the title of Abbaye Royale in 1229 by Louis IX, spurring considerable economic activity in the area, which used to be marshy wasteland, and attracting workmen who helped expand the area's furniture industry. The area surrounding the Bastille, to which the monastery had given its name, and which was incorporated into Paris in 1702, served as the base and home of many celebrated furniture-makers such as the mid-eighteenth-century Germans Oeden and Riesener. Hence, the fortress was a testament to how early the industry welcomed workers from outside France.Less