Austin Rothbard, president of US luxury furniture label Baker.

Baker's signature work, the Athens Lounge Chair Tufted, which is limited to 10 pieces in the Chinese market.

 

If there is only one item that Austin Rothbard, president of American luxury furniture label Baker, can recommend to Chinese consumers, he will pick the Athens Lounge Chair Tufted－which is limited to 10 pieces in the Chinese market.

This product, he says, is a reflection of Chinese people's growing taste for luxury furniture.

The creation from Washington D.C.-based furniture designer Thomas Pheasant is a clever interpretation of traditional style with the chair's legs and the back having a smooth and elegant curve. But it is contrasted with a light golden velvet cushion, made of leather, which looks exquisitely modern.

"We are finding that luxury furniture consumers are a lot similar around the world. But interestingly, what we have found is some of the affluent Chinese consumers tend to focus on a more formal traditional style," says Rothbard, who paid a visit to China to meet Baker's dealers and important consumers.

The company entered China, with an office in Shanghai, in 2009.

In recent years, it noticed a significant trend in luxury furniture in China.

"For us, we have seen affluent Chinese customers spending money on luxury handbags, jewelry and cars, but more recently, as more people choose to entertain at home, they have been spending a lot of money on luxury furniture," Rothbard says.

Baker was founded in the United States in 1890. Many pieces of the label's furniture are known for their handmade quality, gold finishes and alluring details.

With various products available in China, Rothbard says the beauty of the label is that the consumer can choose to mix and match from all Baker's items.

Besides the formal traditional style like Thomas Pheasant, it also offers formal contemporary and relaxed traditional styles. The company's collaboration with established furniture designers all over the world has ensured its unique tastes and luxury.

China sells not only Pheasant's latest collection, but also the Normandie Desk, made from expensive African black wood; the Lyric Tufted King Bed, known for its design with curving lines; and the River House Coffee Table, with a typical Georgia-style decor.

All of them have a strong formal traditional touch: rich in details, warm colors and curved lines.

Rothbard says in the luxury home decor industry, individualized service is also very important.

For example, Baker offers a selection of 1,000 fabrics for finishing on furniture pieces, 40 percent of which are exclusive to the company. Visitors cannot find them in any other companies in the world.

For example, Baker offers a selection of 1,000 fabrics for finishing on furniture pieces, 40 percent of which are exclusive to the company. Visitors cannot find them in any other companies in the world.

Baker's luxury home decors market is booming not only in first-tier cities like Beijing and Shanghai, but also in second-tier cities like Tianjin, Hangzhou in Zhejiang province and Dalian in Liaoning province. It now has eight showrooms on the Chinese mainland.

And the president reveals that China has recorded the fastest growth for its products, among all markets in the world.

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