Breaking with codes and creating 100% Walloon furniture: this is the successful gamble of two cousins from the Liège region who founded the BANDI brand. Around fifty sets (table and benches) were sold in 2017, and production is set to double this year.

Iome beautiful stories are born out of frustration. Four years ago, weary of browsing showrooms in search of benches for his living-room table, Thomas Crucifix designed the piece he wanted himself, then had it built by a neighboring craftsman. “I found everything too expensive or not to my taste,” he explains. I wanted something light and in one piece. “He’s not a designer by any stretch of the imagination, since he’s a sales engineer. But this very personal creation is seductive. “Before long, friends and family were asking me where I’d found the bench. They wanted it in their home. But they also wanted a table for their terrace. That’s when I said to myself that there might be something to do… “.

To bring this project to fruition, Thomas called on his cousin, Olivier Collette, an architect by training. The two men complement each other. One is full of ideas, the other more down-to-earth. “When we had to think about technical solutions for large-scale production, or when we had to refine certain lines to improve the product and reduce costs, Olivier’s skills proved to be very important,” explains Thomas. A concept was soon born. To create a table and bench that could be used both indoors and outdoors. The BANDI range was born. “Look at a terrace with nice furniture, it embellishes the whole, it gives personality to the whole. I can assure you that our white table (our best-selling color, editor’s note) looks great in the summer sun. !“.

Made on our premises

But the two men take their thinking one step further. They want their creations to be relatively affordable, durable and, most importantly, made in Wallonia. Everything is produced close to home, not just finished here like some of our competitors,“exclaims Olivier. We’re in a region, Liège, that has lived by and for metal. The tools exist, the knowledge is there. This industry and this craft need to reinvent themselves. Why manufacture abroad when we have real potential here?

For several months, the two cousins designed, refined and fine-tuned the concept. A number of subcontractors followed suit, bringing in their own expertise. It‘s incredible to realize what can be done here,” continues Olivier. For example, one of our suppliers has kept an old press for bending sheet metal. This machine allows us to do whatever we want. Our competitors don’t have that kind of flexibility anymore.

However, the two soon came face to face with the reality of the market and production costs in Belgium. Far from being discouraged, they adapted their product and production criteria. We offer industrial craftsmanship,“explains Olivier. We have to produce enough to keep costs down, while retaining the notion of ‘handmade’. Thomas adds:“Clearly, spending 2,500 euros on a table and 1,000 euros on a bench is a lot of money. Hence the need to work on a timeless design that will really enhance the terrace or garden. And that will last!

Focus on quality

Each table and bench is made of aluminum, a material that is as fine, graphically speaking, as it is robust. The paints, too, are of the industrial type, a guarantee of longevity. “We really wanted to emphasize quality. These paints are extremely resistant. Look at what some cheaper wooden tables become after a few years. We really wanted to avoid that,”concludes Olivier.

Today, the company is becoming increasingly popular. Around 50 sets (table and benches) were sold in 2017, and production is set to double this year. There’s a real trend for top-of-the-range home-made furniture,“says Thomas. It’s a source of pride to have a piece ‘made in Wallonia’. Our customers say so. They’re looking for ‘local’, both for food and for other aspects of daily life. And both home and decoration are part of everyday life.

Seducing Flanders?

Another argument that may explain the brand’s success: the system of selling in short circuits and without intermediaries. The margins taken by intermediaries would no longer have allowed us to stay within an affordable price range,“concedes Olivier. So we work differently. Today, social networks and word-of-mouth are our best allies. Thomas adds:“Wehave fun with slightly offbeat campaigns. If you make someone laugh, you probably win a customer. But it’s also very important that they can ‘touch’ the table, sit on the benches. That’s why we work with regional ambassadors. Signs, brands, but also private individuals who like our products and show them off.

Sitting on the terrace of their office, leaning on the latest evolution of their table, the two partners look to the future with a certain excitement. “We‘re very keen to expand into Flanders, to seduce Flemish customers with‘madein Wallonia‘,”exclaims Thomas. The market is much bigger for high-end products,” explains Olivier. We’d also like to set up our own production workshop. So far, we haven’t taken any major risks by subcontracting, but it’s clear that we’ll soon be faced with a choice.

In the minds of the two men, other evolutions of the range could see the light of day. But we won’t reveal any more than that, and the cousins content themselves with “We’ll talk about it when the time comes”, punctuated by a broad smile.

“The margin taken by intermediaries would no longer have allowed us to stay within an affordable price range. So we work differently. Social networks and word of mouth are our best allies today.”