SINGAPORE – At a time when most furniture-makers in Australia were churning out pieces made from readily available timber as a scaffold for sofas and armchairs, King Living’s founders Gwen King and her son David went for a modular sofa design with foam in 1977 that would outclass the competition.

Today, the award-winning furniture brand’s top-selling product is its range of leather and fabric sofas.

To celebrate the brand’s provenance, its first sofa received a contemporary redesign aimed at younger home owners. Called the 1977 Sofa, the couch comes with covers made from modern materials such as Leura stretch boucle that can be removed and machine-washed.

The 1977 Sofa is the latest iteration that attests to the brand’s “sofa science”, says King Living’s newly appointed chief executive David Woollcott, who joined the company in November.

Mr Woollcott, 43, who left Fisher & Paykel in November after being managing director for the home appliances brand’s European markets for five years, says King Living has undergone constant research and development, aimed at making furniture differently as well as making pieces that last.

The British-Australian national was in Singapore last week as part of an 11-day whirlwind tour of the brand’s major markets in Asia and the United Kingdom.

“Design is not the only aspect of King Living’s creations,” says Mr Woollcott, who has an engineering degree from the University of Bath in the UK.

“Since the 1970s, King Living has avoided the ‘fast furniture’ business model and invested heavily in durable and modular components that can also be reconditioned instead of ending up in landfills.”

King Living also stocks modular wall units, bedding and luxe outdoor furniture in different materials and colours, and mattresses with machine-washable covers.

All its leather upholstery is sustainably sourced from German, Italian and Australian suppliers, whose clients include luxury marques such as Rolls-Royce and Porsche.

From a humble mother-and-son stall in Sydney’s Paddy Market, King Living has burgeoned into a solid business with about 1,200 employees and 27 showrooms in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Canada and the UK.

Mr Woollcott, who is married with two children, oversees the quality control of its end products.

King Living is one of the few brands in the world that is vertically integrated, where the company has full control of the design, manufacturing, distribution, retail and aftercare service of its products worldwide.

At the centre of the success of its furniture is its steel frame with a 25-year warranty that works in unison with the Postureflex Seating system, a steel suspension system similar to those found in luxury cars. 

The brand has been in Singapore since 2015 and has a 13,000 sq ft flagship showroom at Hong Aik Building in Kallang Avenue.

It sells its products both online and through its showrooms worldwide to ensure that its in-house teams can check on customers through its King Care after-sales service.

Besides its Shanghai mega-factory that was set up in 2003, King Living also opened a high-tech factory in Bangkok, Thailand, in 2021, which ups the design ante with robotics and precision manufacturing.

“The science behind engineering our best-selling sofas goes beyond aesthetics. I am learning new things every day from our founder David – who is still very much involved in the creative aspect of the brand – about the lives that are lived around a piece of furniture,” says Mr Woollcott.

A sofa in tropical climes should ideally be of buttery leather or soft fabrics that do not become heat traps after prolonged use.

The new 1977 Sofa, for instance, also has a slight curvature under the thighs to support the spine in a sitting position.

“As one of the top furniture brands in Australia, as well as growing our presence globally, we look at design holistically,” he adds.

“King Living is not just about furniture design. We’re also focused on well-­engineered products that evolve with users’ needs.”