Of course I could describe Chaise A’s historical and design value here, I could list Tolix’s company principles, and provide business forecasts going forward.
However, that wouldn’t express what is really important to me. It also wouldn’t live up to the idea behind all of this, which is being advanced so passionately by so many people.
Today it seems hard to believe that this idea was once so precarious and that the story of the “Chaise A” was in danger of ending. At the time we reflected on our roots, but turned our gaze to the present and thereby found a way into the future.
The memory of Xavier Pauchard has to this day guided us on this journey. He founded Tolix in a French backwater at the beginning of the 20th century as a simple craftsman and piloted it to world-wide success. His will, his courage, his creativity and his enthusiasm inspired us and spurred us on.
We rolled up our sleeves. We began to modernize the chair, the production, the company and the vision. We invested in new machines, new production halls. And we invested in the people for whom Tolix is part of their life and work today.
We opened up. And the company has since been sized by a new spirit. New designs were created in collaboration with renowned designers such as Sebastian Bergne, Normal Studio, Frédéric Gaunet and Patrick Norguet, who have advanced Xavier Pauchard’s ideas and transported them into the future, with great respect and enthusiasm.
We concentrated on the task at hand fully, put our hearts and souls into the work. And it paid off. Our love was reciprocated, our honest efforts acknowledged.
These last ten years have passed breathtakingly fast. It’s time to pause and reflect for a moment. And to celebrate!
We are celebrating an icon, a silent hero, an archetype: the “Chaise A” is turning 80 and we want to honor this galvanized piece of history appropriately.
We asked designer Kilian Schindler to curate an homage to the “Chaise A”. The resulting project was “Face To Face With An Icon” —you are holding its essence in your hands. This book is brimming with ideas and feelings. Passion, creativity, esprit and joy … all of the things that connect us to the brand and the chair.
Chantal Andriot