Ambitious Beginnings

This is the first post from GreyFox and our aim here is to inform you of how it all began. Throughout the article, we mention key topics, which became central to the company’s origin - topics we will develop further in future posts. 

Perch and Thomas Montgomery - Initial Planning meeting

Systems thinking and planning, to plan for a decade of development

2014

Thomas Montgomery Limited (TML) had a strong history of developing furniture solutions for the Irish market - upholstered seating, office and meeting chairs and tables - but were concerned about their positioning in the marketplace and an omnipresent requirement for cheaper and cheaper prices. Recognising the limits of its domestic market and the failure of Irish manufacturing to succeed internationally in the education and office sectors TML was cautious in reaching out to the Perch Studio, with a view to expanding its opportunity for future growth and development - recognising as it did that future success lay abroad.

Perch, an award-winning Irish Design Studio, had enjoyed success developing ergonomic seating and working solutions with Labofa in Denmark and had recently formed a partnership with OrangeBox UK to develop another patented office chair project. 

Stuart Montgomery, Principal, TML asked a question of Perch that resonated with them - “What would you do, if you worked with an Irish manufacturer, to develop an international business that was sustainable?”

A BIG response was encouraged, and this very open question sparked a series of meetings over 6 months.  Energised by the possibilities, Perch and TML set about developing an outline strategy to build a sustainable, innovative business that would centre on new thinking in the office and education sectors.

Engaging with the task Perch began by looking at the international furniture sector, worker and learner habits and needs, followed by an in-depth review of the ergonomic and psychological requirements for healthy work.  With this they identified 5 primary categories for which to design.

Perch were known for developing ergonomic seating and working solutions but their broader ambitions lay with developing holistic solutions that would benefit workers - not just seating.  The social, biophilic environmental and ergonomic requirements of worker solutions became their centre of focus as TML had presented an open canvas on which to create.

In mid 2014 Perch presented ‘A Concept of Urbanism’ as a foundation onto which future collections would be conceived and set about developing a strategy which would focus on bringing solutions to market that enhance wellbeing by providing access to movement and addressing the pressing demands of a circular economy - a priority being, to avoid regurgitative and insular solutions!

Prototyping phase, with Perch Studio

Getting hands on with each stage of development was key to building a thorough understanding of the products and processes involved.

Circa 2015

Shortly thereafter TML showcased FLOAT seating, Perch’s first product concept at the Milan Design fair, the WantedDesign exhibition in NewYork, 100% Design in London, Clerkenwell Design Week, London and Design Week, Dublin.  Encouraged by its reception and after winning awards at the Institute of Designers in Ireland and also at the internationally acclaimed, A' Design Awards they were eager to progress with planning and development.

The next milestone follows quickly. Having attracted the interest of Walls to Workstations, Ireland’s leading Interior Solution’s company and its Principals, Michael Clarke and Gerry Whelan, GreyFox Design emerges in 2017 as a joint venture initiative following a series of meetings with ambitions to promote the brand internationally.

FLOAT launches at Milan Design Week

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Circa 2015

The name GreyFox takes its inspiration from the adaptive nature of today’s urban fox reflecting further our fascination with the adaptation of humans to the built environment and how it’s imposition into the lives of families and workers creates new and exciting challenges.  How can the development of simple furniture create more naturalistic environments for people as they go through their day, and how can people thrive in an otherwise harsh and engineered world? What a great challenge!

GreyFox completes its first collection of furniture around the award-winning FLOAT chair, as a collaborative workspace solution which improves the informal interactions between people.  The hero element, the chair, was developed around the concept of an Armchair, with supportive pieces.

After the launch of FLOAT, Perch and GreyFox began working on the next collections of furniture. Today, the company has three collections in its portfolio, namely, Grounded - a series of project tables - and Sympatico, a collection of technology assisted furniture for enabling more agility in third space activities. The design team is currently working on 4 new collections of furniture, which will be launching very soon. All with a focus on providing ergonomic solutions and access to movement, within the framework of the company’s ‘A Concept of Urbanism’ vision. 

As we develop this series of blog posts, we hope to elaborate more on the specifics of each collection and showcase the benefits of each furniture collection, as well as sharing the critical insights that led to their developments. 

 For any further queries, to see the furniture for yourself, or to inquire about where the GreyFox furniture is available, please contact Catherine at sales@greyfox.design