Sight Unseen (a blog that shares a similar fascination with products, processes and the people behind them) has an interview with Another Country founder Paul de Zwart. The main topic of conversation is the restrictions caused by a commitment to solely manufacturing in the UK. Since launching in 2010, Another Country has developed its product range from just furniture, in to a growing range of accessories. However, the growth of the company has forced it to shift the production of certain items abroad, as de Zwart explains:
“We’re still able make to commissions and one-offs in the Dorset workshop — and the materials are sourced from places like Devon, Scotland and Surrey — but in terms of the production items, they’re made in Portugal. We’ve come to realize that it’s very hard to balance provenance and the romantic notion of keeping things close to home when you actually need to have a reliable, sustainable manufacturer who can deliver the goods on time, at a proper price, and at a consistent quality. It had become almost impossible for me to grow the business short of only selling direct to the consumer.”
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Photo of Another Country studio from Sight Unseen
