Revitalisation in the project business

Thonet’s repair service: giving preloved furniture a new lease of life 

Sustainability comes full circle - Repaired instead of replaced

It’s a simple calculation: the longer an item is used the less impact its manufacture ultimately has on the environment. Thus, longevity is one of the most important elements of furniture design. As long as a chair, table or shelf can still be used, there is no need to make a new one. In other words, the most sustainable products are the ones that already exist. Thonet’s long company history spanning more than 200 years speaks for itself: Thonet products are built to last. To ensure that the quality of Thonet products remains exemplary, they are manufactured exclusively in its Frankenberg factory (North Hesse, Germany) by seasoned, highly trained experts using the very best materials. These Thonet employees also have another important task: refurbishing preloved Thonet furniture. The goal is to further increase the lifespan of these already durable products, making their product life cycle come full circle. With its in-house repair service, Thonet is responding to a growing need: more and more architects, planners and real estate developers are incorporating second-hand furniture and materials into their projects.

When furniture has been used for decades, as was the case with some Thonet chairs in a city hall in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, those years of use can be seen on each piece. The upholstery might be stained or ripped, the wood might look a bit battered, and gliders and stoppers might be missing. But this definitely does not mean that the furniture should be thrown away. All it needs is a few new parts and some TLC. Thonet’s comprehensive repair service includes the collection of the furniture from wherever is being used. It is then repaired in the Thonet factory and returned as good as new. The Thonet team in the factory first inspect the pieces, taking them apart if needed, and appraise the necessary repairs. The amount of repair work needed depends on how long and how much the item has been used. Some of the most common repairs include sanding and re-varnishing the wooden surfaces. Seat shells often need to be re-upholstered with new fabric. And, of course, the canework for which Thonet is so famous often needs replacing. Especially in older models that were made without the supporting mesh underneath, the canework is often damaged and needs to be replaced. The individual pieces of the furniture are reused as much as possible, for example the original screws are saved and used again. When the refurbishing process is complete, the furniture is once again fully functional and looks like new – ready for its second life.

Repair service for more than 50 years

Repairing used furniture is, however, nothing new for Thonet. For over 50 years, the company has had a small repair department at its headquarters with, at the last count, three employees. Up until now, the team has mainly repaired single pieces of furniture for individual private customers, who have often brought their bentwood or tubular steel furniture to the factory in Frankenberg themselves. Now, however, Thonet is expanding its repair and refurbishing services to include project customers such as architects and planners who want to incorporate used Thonet pieces into their projects. The repair service generally accepts all Thonet models, regardless of whether they are still part of the Thonet portfolio or not. Repair services for project customers are, for the most part, carried out on a large scale. In the previously mentioned example of the city hall in Baden-Württemberg, approximately 300 of the S 320 chairs were given a new lease of life. In order to process these larger orders as quickly as possible, Thonet has not only expanded its repair department, but has also integrated it into the manufacturing facilities for new products. The three employees in the repair department evaluate the furniture as it comes in and, depending on what needs repairing, hand it over to the same team that manufactures new Thonet products. This service is not only a step up in terms of sustainability, it is also creating jobs for skilled workers right here in Germany.