A sofa is for sitting on, and often also for stretching out in the evening. However, fewer people know that banks can be very polluting. The Utrecht-based Kairos therefore set out to create the most sustainable bank in the Netherlands.
In Europe, more than 11 billion kilos of furniture are thrown away every year. More than 80 percent is incinerated or ends up in landfill and only 10 to 20 percent is recycled. Joris Helming, Eelco Schouten and Thijs van Bemmel wanted to do something about this and founded Kairos.
“We want a radical change in the furniture industry. That is why Kairos developed a sustainable, comfortable quality sofa, made of high-quality materials but with a low footprint, produced in the Netherlands, that lasts a long time and is easy to maintain and repair,” says co-founder of Kairos Thijs van Bemmel.
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The parts in a conventional sofa are glued or stapled during production, making repairing or replacing parts impossible or far too expensive. In order to storm the market as a sustainable leader, product designers Helming and Schouten had to pioneer the use of (local) materials.
For example, the back cushions are filled with wool from the Dutch Wool Collective, which looks for destinations for the Dutch wool surplus. The sofas can be upholstered with different furniture fabrics, made from recycled clothing or recycled plastic bottles. The steel frame is produced in the Netherlands and all cushions are produced by a social enterprise.
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“Kairos offers all parts separately for replacement. This means that the sofa does not end up at the first stain or tear on the side of the road. We will definitely look for other furniture that we can tackle. We want to make the entire industry more sustainable and we see other players in the market already taking small steps, this is the right time to continue the change. Our role is to continue to pioneer,” says Van Bemmel
The first sofas are now in various living rooms. In addition to sofas, the Utrecht company has also recently developed an armchair.
