Floyd: The Indispensable Source for Indisposeable Furniture
Floyd, founded by Kyle Hoff and Alex O’Dell, produces furniture for city living. Think good design, easy purchase & assembly, long-lasting quality, and last but not least, free shipping. Floyd changes the way we think about furniture – rather than individual pieces being the staple of the home, the customer is the priority, and the furniture moves and adapts with the customer based on their ever-changing home & family dynamics and moves.
Here, Floyd shares their founding story, the influence of Detroit, and their mission to eliminate disposable furniture.
Photography courtesty of Floyd
Floyd was founded by Kyle Hoff & Alex O’Dell back in 2013 – what was the “aha” moment motivating the duo to launch Floyd with a Kickstarter campaign?
Kyle and Alex met when working on another project in Detroit. Kyle, an architect by training, had the design for the original Floyd Leg in his room. He and Alex began talking about the design and the possibilities of re-thinking traditional furniture. They began with a Kickstarter so they could see if the idea had the proverbial legs to jump-start their vision. Setting out to raise $18,000 to produce 100 sets of Floyd Legs, the “aha” moment definitely came when the goal was reached within the first 24 hours.
How exactly is Floyd a new kind of furniture company, making furniture for “city living”?
Floyd makes furniture for the way people live today. Furniture made to be a part of your life and to go where you go, not just used for a year and thrown out. Floyd’s all about good design, lasting quality, ease of purchase and assembly – and did we mention free shipping 🙂 ?
Floyd’s office/showroom is based in the Corktown neighborhood of Detroit. How has the city of Detroit influenced Floyd’s design and brand vision?
The City of Detroit has an amazing history of innovation — from the Model T to Motown, the spirit of creating something new and breaking barriers is something we feel living and working in the city everyday. In addition, Detroit is the home to a long-lasting manufacturing hub that we have the privilege to tap into.
Tell us about your production process…
Our products are manufactured with partners in the Great Lakes Region. Laser-cut bent steel in Akron. Wood production in mid-Michigan. Powder-coating right here in Detroit.
Millennials are known to be the “moving generation” – according to your research, the average millennial stays in an apartment for 9-12 months before packing up and moving again. How have these findings impacted your designs?
We make furniture that is easy to move — that is meant to move with you. Our designs can change to whatever size they need to be.
Based on your knowledge of the industry, what are some modern day issues impacting the furniture design industry?
More than half of the world population is living in cities. The furniture industry has failed to adapt to changing living patterns, shifts in consumer preferences, and technology. The industry is operating on a broken model: Dominant big box stores with too many choices have poor online experiences, products that aren’t designed for shipping, which are also challenging to assemble, difficult to return, and ultimately, destined for the landfill.
We believe that disposable furniture is a problem worth solving!
What are some of your best-sellers?
The Floyd Platform Bed and The Utility Set — the two most essential apartment staples!
How does Floyd typically work with interior designers?
Floyd doesn’t directly work with interior designers at this point but we do believe that our designs are great for designers to use, as they can fit in many different types of spaces with different styles.
Why would an interior designer want to furnish a residential or commercial space with Floyd designs?
Floyd provides adaptability — our products can be whatever you need them to be, and then change if you need them to! A choice of surface can really give off a personality as well 🙂 .
What are Floyd’s goals for 2017?
We are growing quickly and on our way to being the indispensable source of indisposeable furniture for the world!
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