The Story Behind Bolon: Fusing Rugs with the World of Fashion 19th August 2022 | IN EXPERT INSIGHT | BY SBID

What are the origins of your brand?

The company was originally founded in Stockholm in 1949, by Nils Erik Eklund, who came up with the idea of recycling textile offcuts into woven rag rugs. In many ways, our founder was ahead of his time and his ability to see an opportunity where others couldn’t still inspires us. Today, his granddaughters Annica and Marie keep this same spirit alive but since they took over the company from their parents Lars and Monica in 2003, they have also been on a mission – to make Bolon a design-led innovator and fuse the conservative, traditional flooring industry with the boundless creativity of the world of fashion. Under their leadership, business has transformed from a traditional weaving mill into an international design brand with clients such as Armani, Google, Four Seasons Hotels, Chanel, Adidas, Apple and Missoni Home and we’ve collaborated with world-renowned designers and architects. We are proud of our progress, but our story continues – we want to keep moving forward and innovating, creating sustainable, world leading flooring and rug solutions.

rug designs, The Story Behind Bolon: Fusing Rugs with the World of Fashion

How do you work with interior designers?

We have a team of people, both in the UK and internationally, who work closely with interior designers to keep them abreast of our new products. We aim to offer the best service possible every step of the way, including quick and efficient technical, design and sample support.

What value does your sector add to the interior design industry?

Innovation, inspiration and unique flooring and rug products.

rug designs, The Story Behind Bolon: Fusing Rugs with the World of Fashion

How do your services/offering enhance an interior designer’s projects?

Bolon creates beautiful flooring and rugs that stay looking that way, even after years of use. Our multiple custom options mean that there is a unique solution for each project a designer is working on, depending on the requirements of the client.

rug designs, The Story Behind Bolon: Fusing Rugs with the World of Fashion

What are the latest trends you’ve noticed in your client’s requests?

Sustainability is a big part of our DNA and we are proud of our impressive sustainability credentials. We have noticed that these are of increasing interest to all interior designers, and we’re thrilled that this has become such an important part of how designers work.  It is also essential that our flooring and rugs are long lasting, so the cleanability of our flooring is also of increasing interest. Designers and their clients need flooring and rugs that are practical, as well as beautiful. People have had bad experiences with flooring that is not cleanable and therefore looks tired quickly after very little use, so they love how easy our flooring is to clean.

We’ve also noticed a number of requests for rugs that can be used both inside and outdoors.

rug designs, The Story Behind Bolon: Fusing Rugs with the World of Fashion

Questions answered by Sarah Herman, Director, Bolon UK.

If you’d like to feature your product news here, get in touch to find out more. 

If you’d like to become SBID Accredited, click here for more information.