British designer Tom Dixon can’t be put into one box when it comes to product design. He is multi-talented, and widely recognised for his sci-fi lighting designs—many of which look like sculptures hanging from the ceiling—but that’s not where his talents end.
He also designs furniture, including lamps, chairs, and tables meant to brighten up drab interiors, often with a disco flair.
This year, Dixon celebrates 20 years of his namesake brand. Over the last two decades his brand has expanded to 90 countries, with showrooms in New York, Tokyo, and Hong Kong. The latest boutique opened in Beijing in 2020.
Dixon has won numerous awards, including the London Design Medal at the London Design Festival. In 2014, he received an Order of the British Empire from Her Majesty the Queen.
Dixon was born in 1959 in Sfax, Tunisia, as the son of an English teacher and a journalist for the BBC World Service. In 1972, he began studying art at Holland Park Comprehensive high school in London, specializing in pottery and life drawing, and in 1979, he began working creative odd jobs (one was painting at a cartoon film company, another was playing in a disco band called Funkapolitan).
The rise of punk in London at the time helped create space for the kind of freeform design ethos that Dixon adopted. It gave his generation “license to create—without certificates, university courses or parental approval,” he says. In 1983, he learned how to weld with the help of a friend who worked in an automotive shop. He made over 100 chairs by hand in his first year.
In 1986, Dixon designed the S-Chair, which became a hit with Italian manufacturers for its curvy, elegant design. “I have often been asked what the inspiration was behind the S-Chair, and, honestly, the only memory I have is of drawing a small doodle of a chicken and thinking that I could make a chair from it,” he laughs.
Today, Dixon’s studio is based in a 19th century factory called the Coal Office in King’s Cross. In June, he was the subject of a retrospective at the Salone del Mobile furniture fair in Milan this June.
From his second home on the south coast of England, Dixon, 63, spoke to Penta about his brand, fashion inspiration, and the future of sustainable design.
PENTA: Can you believe it has been 20 years?
Tom Dixon: I can’t believe it’s true. I’ve been doing this longer than 20 years, but it’s 20 years since this label. It’s ridiculous. When I started it, it was after working for Italian luxury companies, working in the corporate world at Habitat (which is the equivalent of Pottery Barn in the U.S.) as creative director, it was time for me to do my own thing again. I wanted to mimic how fashion designers operate—design but also take care of their distribution and communication, and they have their name over the door, too. As a rule, product designers typically work for other brands. I wanted to have a singular voice and hold my aesthetic ideas together under one roof.
What fashion designers have you looked up to?
I love the Japanese brands that came out of the 1980s, like Commes des Garcons and Issey Miyake, in terms of keeping a sense of integrity. I love Raf Simons’ own label, too. There are young English designers at the moment too, like Grace Wales Bonner.
Who are your design heroes?
I was fortunate to have met the living design legends of the 1950s and 1960s before they passed away. Designers like Ettore Sottsass, Achille Castiglioni, Verner Panton, and Enzo Mari, who for me really are amazing examples who really believed in design as a way of changing the world. It was postwar Europe. When I first started, I was mainly interested in sculpture and only learned about design after I fell into it.
What was Ettore Sottsass from the Memphis Group like?
Calm, friendly, and unassuming. He was great. There were also designers I was inspired to rebel against. I thought postmodernism was the ugliest thing, very pastel, geometric and patterned. Meanwhile I was making things out of rusty metal. I’ve grown to love the Memphis Group—Ettore was not only a prolific designer, but he organized a whole movement. He has that polymath attitude, like Buckminster Fuller or Isamu Noguchi.
What was your approach for The Manzoni (restaurant and showroom) in Milan? It’s like a concrete metal jungle with an abundance of lights.
It was an attempt to try to challenge the idea of having conventional showrooms. I’ve been interested in food for a long time, there’s a link between entertaining and design, in general. We managed to get our restaurant The Coal Office going well in King’s Cross, so we brought something to Italy.
My time in Italy was often tied around food, as meetings with manufacturers were based around lunchtime at their factory, many of which have canteens. I thought it would be better to spend the money on a restaurant with a small showroom attached. Rather than someone entering a design showroom every 20 years to buy a designer table, they might come every two weeks to have lunch and eat off our plates and drink from our glasses. It’s a way to engage people than to have a dusty old furniture store.
What’s next for you?
My core interest remains the same. I love manufacturing techniques, materials, whether it’s industry or craft, we have a close relationship with the people who make the pieces. We have to be conscious and aware of our impact on the planet.
There are a few experiments in thinking through what sustainability looks like for a furniture company and how we can be more thoughtful about what we put into the world. That’s what our future is rotating around. We have to constantly rethink what we’ve done and how to pave the way for the future.
What is your approach to sustainable design?
Sustainability isn’t a single thing, it’s a huge host of actions. The most sustainable thing would be not to make anything at all. There’s a seaside plant called eel grass, which is collected in Denmark to create roofing material, and we’re experimenting with it as an upholstery material. Like many other people, we’re experimenting with mycelium, a type of fungi to make furniture. We’re also doing a conceptual project where we’re growing chairs underwater.
Reprinted by permission of Penta. Copyright 2021 Dow Jones & Company. Inc. All Rights Reserved Worldwide. Original date of publication: Aug 1, 2022.
As tariffs bite, Sydney’s MAISON de SABRÉ is pushing deeper into the US, holding firm on pricing and proving that resilience in luxury means more than survival.
Early indications from several big regional real-estate boards suggest March was overall another down month.
As tariffs bite, Sydney’s MAISON de SABRÉ is pushing deeper into the US, holding firm on pricing and proving that resilience in luxury means more than survival.
As global trade tensions intensify and tariffs reshape the retail landscape, one Australian brand is choosing to scale rather than retreat.
Sydney-founded luxury label MAISON de SABRÉ is doubling down on the US market, pushing ahead with a bold expansion strategy despite rising cost pressures and broader global uncertainty.
While many brands are increasing prices or pausing shipments, MAISON de SABRÉ is holding its price point for customers and continuing to invest in its US operations.
The move reflects a deeper strategic play: a vertically integrated, zero-waste supply chain that allows the brand to deliver on cost, speed, and quality — even under pressure.
It’s this model, paired with consistent product innovation and sharp design, that has helped MAISON de SABRÉ build lasting equity in international markets.
At its pop-up in Bloomingdale’s, MAISON de SABRÉ is currently the top-selling brand in its category — a position it also holds in the top two across both Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom’s online platforms.
Co-founder and CEO Omar Sabré says this is no accident.
“This is going to be a very difficult period for a lot of smaller brands — especially those relying on offshore mass production or single growth markets,” says Sabré.
“We’ve built a uniquely global model that can absorb shocks — from pricing pressure to supply chain disruption — while protecting customers and safeguarding long-term growth.”
Founded on a mission to deliver modern, accessible luxury, the brand hand-finishes its signature full-grain cowhide goods in Sydney, tested against a 13-point quality control protocol.
Sustainability is embedded, not just as a value but as a competitive advantage. MAISON de SABRÉ sources exclusively from LWG Gold-Rated tanneries, and its transition to DriTan™ leather — the world’s most sustainable tanning method — saves 25 million litres of water annually and reduces chemical use by 33%.
With 85% material utilisation, zero-waste production, and carbon offsetting on track by 2026, MAISON de SABRÉ is setting a new standard for sustainable craftsmanship at scale.
“We’ve always believed that staying close to the customer — operationally and emotionally — is what separates sustainable brands from short-term players,” says Sabré.
“This isn’t just about product. It’s about building systems that hold up in any climate.”
While competitors pivot or pause, MAISON de SABRÉ is executing a long-term strategy built on control, creativity, and disciplined growth. In a disrupted global retail market, the brand isn’t just weathering the storm — it’s shaping the new definition of modern luxury.
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