It is this perfect curve that, perhaps more than anything else, represents Fritz Hansen.

As if drawn with a sweeping, swift line, the backrest stretches out in an arc.

Coming from the fully rounded underside, the curve ramps up and swings up to the upper end of the backrest.

It is not for nothing that the "Egg" armchair was named after the equally perfect curve of the egg - and it was often quoted or copied.

Anyone who has seen Arne Jacobsen's armchair will recognize it immediately – the shape of the seat shell is so simple and obvious at the same time.

Armrests, ears and headrest naturally grow out of the overall shape and want to embrace you.

And Jacobsen's design from 1958 really delivers on the promise of an inviting gesture.

The chair is really comfortable

you feel safe and protected in it.

And: The perfect form meets an equally perfect finish.

When Fritz Hansen claims to be creating the extraordinary on his 150th birthday - "Shaping the Extraordinary", that's the claim in the original - then it is above all Jacobsen's masterpieces in an organic style such as the "Egg" and "Swan" armchairs or the chairs of the 7-series, which justify this claim.

The competition for original design has increased

"We stand for extraordinary design," affirms Josef Kaiser, Managing Director of Fritz Hansen since 2020.

"We don't want mainstream products, that doesn't suit us.

The products are allowed to set a direction, they should surprise.

Nevertheless, they should be recognizable as Fritz Hansen.” In 150 years of company history, what is believed to be the oldest furniture manufacturer in Denmark that still exists has brought a number of such trend-setting products onto the market.

The designs by the architect and designer Jacobsen, of course, but also pieces of furniture by his colleagues Poul Kjærholm, Kaare Klint and Hans J. Wegener.

To this day, they form the foundation of the company, both economically and conceptually.

But on the occasion of the anniversary this year, the question arises as to how the future can be built on this foundation.

Because the world is no longer as clear and concise as it was at the height of Danish modernism in the 1950s and 1960s, when many of the classics were created.

The Nordic countries, above all Denmark, are still among the most stimulating places on the design map today.

The 3 Days of Design in Copenhagen showed this impressively.

But business has become faster and more international, with many more large and small brands and manufacturers fighting for attention and market share.

At the same time, original design by well-known designers is cheaper today, thanks to digital marketing and production in low-wage countries outside of Europe.

The Copenhagen competition around Hay and Muuto has proven it over the past twenty years, new brands are always following their example.

A manufacturer as steeped in tradition as Fritz Hansen recently ran the risk of looking old compared to its young, fresh competitors.