Furniture firm expands to UK

A family firm is going against the grain by expanding its hand-crafted furniture range into the growing British market and opening a London showroom following a significant boost in sales.

Kilkenny-based Fineline Furniture has seen half of its sales for the first six months of the year going to Britain and now they are bucking the trend in a sector among the hardest hit by the recession, and investing in a new showroom in London.

The people behind the company hope their quality Irish-made furniture will prove a winner with British customers who want something in their homes to stand the test of time, rather than “disposable clutter”.

According to Tommie Hughes, it’s been a “tough few years” for Fineline Furniture and the whole sector but the uniqueness of their products is spurring a new generation of buyers to visit their new showroom on the edge of Kilkenny city.

“What we make isn’t disposable,” he said yesterday. “It’s not a fad. Our pieces will never date or end up in a skip. Our tables in particular have stood the test of time and all the punishment that normal family life brings with it.”

Always on their mind when they make a table, Mr Hughes said, is the fact that the traditional table is where families gather to eat, share good and bad news, do the homework and tell stories.

“We’re heading into our 21st year in business and we’re delighted to be seeing a whole new generation of buyers who’ve grown up sitting around our tables and on our chairs coming in and buying from us for their own homes. We’re very honoured and it means the individual attention we give each piece is all worthwhile.”

Two recent UK trade shows significantly boosted business for Fineline Furniture. The decision to open a showroom in London in Feb 2013 is a bold move but a necessary investment to ensure the firm continues to grow into the future, according to Mr Hughes.

“British people hold the Irish in very high regard. They know we do things well. We’re trustworthy. They consider us to be very like them and they like the quality of our work, our attention to detail and our business ethic.”

Customers who visit the Kilkenny showroom can see pieces being made in the adjoining craft workshop where the Fineline team works with solid oak, ash, Irish spalted beech, maple, walnut, mahogany, cherry, flamey beech, pine, sycamore and various other timbers.

Tommie trained as a cabinetmaker in both Ireland and America and came back home to set up the family-run business with his wife, Mary. They believe that no matter what, the customer comes first and they will never compromise on quality.