TEXTILES.ORG
Modus Furniture, based in the U.K., produces furniture with sustainability in mind, offering a take-back program to ensure pieces have multiple life cycles.
Founded in 2000, Modus makes sofas, booths, lounge chairs, tables and desks, among other home goods. Since 2019, the company’s factory in Somerset, England, has been operating on 100% renewable electricity.
The Modus ReWork program launched in 2020 and allows furniture pieces to be returned for refurbishment or remanufacture. Upon return, each piece is assessed to determine whether a repair or part replacement is needed, or if a complete remanufacture is necessary.
Modus furniture items are designed to accommodate this, featuring minimal glue and permanent fixings for easy disassembly. Each one also includes a 10-year warranty and is available with Forest Stewardship Council certification.
The company also works with wine cork manufacturers to repurpose cork waste, mixing small pieces of leftover cork with a polyurethane binder to create cork agglomerate. The agglomerate is then pressed into large blocks, which are used to make Modus’ cork table collection and Bob cork stool. Efforts such as these aid in the survival of cork oak forests.
The same year the ReWork program launched, the Richard chair and the Clara collection were released. The Richard chair has a felt shell made from 100% PET and was designed in collaboration with Michael Young. The Clara collection by Modus designer Terri Pecora includes two armchairs and a sofa. The armchairs and sofa have cushions that can be easily replaced or reupholstered, and tubular steel frames for easy dismantling.