At Milan Direct, we’re constantly looking for ways to improve our services and interact with our customers. So instead of launching a new product you might like, we decided to let you run the show! Tell us what our next product launch should be, which design classics you love, which pieces of design history you yearn for.
Should it be Eero Aarnio’s über-cool Bubble Chair or Arne Jacobsen’s iconic Ant Chair, a classic of modern chair design named for its approximate similarity to the outline of an ant with its head raised? Or maybe the exquisite Bertoia Diamond Chair and Jacobsen’s classic Series 7 Chair, perfect for both homes and offices? And what about Eero Saarinen’s Tulip armchair, designed in 1956 for Knoll?
Tell us what you think and we’ll make it happen!
Comments
Hear what our customer's have to say.
Alana Reid says...
Hey MD. Have actually been looking for a Bubble chair for some time now. We have bought one of your Red Ball chairs and love it! So far have not been able to find a Bubble chair for less then $1725. If you can bring one in for the $1000 - $1200 mark I would certainly purchase one! $1700+ is a bit excessive though.
Posted at 3:11 p.m. on August 9, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hey Alana, thanks for your feedback! The Bubble Chair is also one of our favourites... We'll keep you posted on this. Cheers, Milan Direct
Posted at 11:30 a.m. on August 10, 2008
subba rao says...
I do agree what Alana reid says. you can count me in for that deal. please keep the price for that bubble chair a bit affordable. I will be more than happy to buy that. also u can deliver free 0f cost within sydney or accept a cheaper conveyance fee like other furniture shops who charge between 40-60 for the delivery.
Posted at 6:40 p.m. on August 13, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Subba, Thanks for your feedback. The Bubble Chair does seem to be popular choice at this stage and we are looking into it. If we can add to our range for Australia's best price (as Alana mentioned closer to $1200 mark) we will. The only issue we can see with the Bubble chair is that you need a rather large room with a very high ceiling to use it (i.e chain it to a beam). But if you have the room it surely is a fantastic chair! Stay tuned! cheers, Milan Direct
Posted at 12:31 p.m. on August 14, 2008
John Holmes says...
Hey, can you tell us where you get the chairs manufactured and what policies the manufacturers have regarding their impact on the environment. Also their attitude towards their workforce? We know you are a paperless office and Australian, but what about where the 'footprint' is REALLY making an impact.
Posted at 5:42 p.m. on August 20, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi John,
Thanks for your important question. Just like any other Australian owned company we are mindful of the impact we are making on the environment. In regards to what MD can control internally, we have ensured that not only are we a paperless office, but we use recyclable materials for our product packaging which can be reused by the customer or recycled.
Externally, we align ourselves with ethically minded manufacturers - and are very proud of this! We have developed strong relationships with these suppliers over several years to ensure that they have the same standards of practice that we would offer our own employees here in Australia. All staff in these companies are unionised, similar to what is present in Australia; and staff are protected by these unions to ensure a quality work life.
At MD we are constantly challenging the ways in which we operate (which includes our internal systems and the suppliers we use) to provide an improved and more responsible service. We would like to know more about how you think we can become a socially responsible organisation and value your feedback. If you have any suggestions on how we can further reduce our footprint, we’d like to hear them.
Posted at 10:42 a.m. on August 22, 2008
Daniel says...
Will you get any of the eero saarinen tulip range, fibreglass tulip chairs and marble top tulip dining tables ?
Posted at 11:44 a.m. on August 26, 2008
ANDREW says...
very keen to see florence knoll sofa availaible... any plans on that one...
Posted at 1:50 p.m. on August 26, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi,
Thanks for your feedback.
Daniel, we have actually stocked the Tulip range in the past however there was little demand for this product. We can manufacture the Tulip chairs and tables, and can make up for bulk orders if interested. We will put up shortly on the site to show options. Great for cafe fit-outs!
Andrew. The Florence Knoll Sofa is fantastic and we have been wanting to bring in for a while now. The only issue with this product is it's rather large/ heavy and so freight would be very expensive. However keep an eye out on our website, as we add new products all the time. If we get enough interest for the Knoll Sofa, we will look to add to our range.
All the best. Milan Direct
Posted at 8:12 a.m. on August 27, 2008
Kerry Forrest says...
Above your 'VOTE FOR OUR NEXT PRODUCT LAUNCH' title, you have some chairs pictured - kind of a hybrid of Harry Bertoia wire and Eames DSR chairs, but with coloured padding. Are you going to stock these? If so, I'm interested (though there's not a lot of room left, after my last MD purchases - 7 in total!).
Cheers, Kerry
Posted at 6:59 p.m. on August 27, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Kerry,
Good to hear from you again, and hope you are enjoying all of your Milan Direct products! You are very close in your description of the chairs pictured above, which are known as the DKR Eames Wire-base side chair. The wire side chair utilises the very famous "Eiffel Tower" base and was originally designed by Ray and Charles Eames in 1951.
When you add the leather bikini to the chairs, they become great for both outdoor and indoor use. We are always looking at adding products to our range, so if we get enough requests we will surely consider!
All the best. Milan Direct
Posted at 8:44 a.m. on August 29, 2008
Ric says...
I would love to see an Eames Compact Sofa. Any chance on reproducing that?
Posted at 10:39 p.m. on September 9, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Ric, The Eames Compact Sofa is very stylish indeed. Very suitable for commercial use. We do add new products to our range every few months, so we will consider if we get enough interest. Thanks for your feedback. All the best - Milan Direct
Posted at 2:16 p.m. on September 11, 2008
Majula says...
I love the tulip chairs! I have been looking for them ever since I saw them in home beatiful when a Brazilian fabric designer combined both the tulip chairs with the Eiffel chair. Either way these reproduction items are a winner.
Please let me know when the tulip chairs arrive.
Posted at 7:18 p.m. on September 12, 2008
Andrew says...
Is the Eames aluminium group lounge chair and footstool as well as a the Nelson end table items you would consider adding to your range?
Posted at 9:01 p.m. on September 13, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Majula and Andrew,
Thanks for your feedback.
We are looking to add the Tulip products to our range. We do currently offer the Tulip range for commercial sales, and hope to have them for sale to general public in the coming months.
The Eames Aluminium group lounge chair and ottoman we have been considering as it is a very similar model to our current range of office chairs (http://www.milandirect.com.au/shop/category/office-chairs/) and a proven winner over a long period of time. As for the Nelson End table, there has not been enough interest over the years to consider bringing this in. If you require for a fit-out / bulk order we could order in with a lead time of prox 8-10 weeks.
All the best - Milan Direct
Posted at 3:41 p.m. on September 15, 2008
Dale says...
What about adding the Ludwig Mies van der Rohe Krefeld sofa and chair designed for Knoll. This is my favorite sofa and suitable in domestic and commercial spaces.
Posted at 9:27 p.m. on September 30, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Dale,
You have excellent taste! I have seen the Ludwig Mies van der Rohe 'Krefeld' Sofa in many hotels and pensions throughout Europe. Super comfortable and definately a high-end product. The only issue we have with importing large products is that they are expensive to freight Australia and NZ wide, and we are always trying to lower our delivery charges to provide the best value for our customers.
Will keep in mind though!
cheers - Dean - Milan Direct
Posted at 12:04 p.m. on October 1, 2008
Nixtc says...
Love the bubble chair :D Hope to be purchasing one in the near future :)
Posted at 1:57 p.m. on October 5, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Nixtc,
The Bubble chair is awesome! They come in two types. The hanging Bubble chair and one on a stand. The hanging Bubble chair is brilliant but you do need a very large room with high ceilings to hang (and a reinforced steel beam). Great for renovated warehouse type abodes.
All the best - Milan Direct
Posted at 10:05 a.m. on October 8, 2008
Sylvia Lima says...
I would like to buy a Egg Chair.How can I do?Thanks
Posted at 8:17 p.m. on October 13, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Sylvia,
Please send us an email to 'sales@milandirect.com.au" for all product questions.
All the best - Milan Direct
Posted at 11:49 a.m. on October 17, 2008
Tina says...
I vote for MD to commence an Australian design competition for a new sustainable furniture item with the winning design to manufactured and distributed on line by MD.
These Asian made reproductions do nothing for global warming and the environment. We all need to start thinking about the future and not be stuck in the past.
Posted at 9:53 p.m. on October 24, 2008
Jules says...
The general gaps in the range seem to be lighting and tables -- there's a beautiful Eames plywood coffee table, and also fantastic small Eames side tables. These would be reasonably light items and should be fairly cheap to ship. Have you considered them?
Posted at 4:29 p.m. on October 25, 2008
Caz says...
Hi,
Is there any chance that you would be stocking the Philip Starck ghost chairs anytime soon?
thanks
Posted at 8:29 p.m. on October 27, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Jules and Caz,
Thanks for your comments. Jules you make a good point about our product range, and we do actually plan on including several smaller lamps into our range start of next year. We will probably add some funky desk / table lamps for home and office use as these are easy enough to ship Australian wide and compliment many of our products.
We did stock a reproduction Eames Coffee Table in Natural and Walnut last year and earlier this year, however we had minimal demand from customers and so have not made any up recently. Is anyone else interested in this table? If so we can add to our next containers.
Caz, at this stage we have no plans on adding the Ghost chair to our range, however we have a very similar chair currently in our product range, the Marina Chair (http://www.milandirect.com.au/shop/marina-cafe-chair/) which is just as fun!
All the best, Milan Direct
Posted at 8:47 a.m. on October 28, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi everyone,
Thanks a lot for your feedback! Based on the posts we have received on this blog, we have decided to add the highly popular Hanging Bubble chair to our product range.
And the good news is: thanks to our streamlined direct-to-customer business model, we were able to price it at only $1199, which is by far the best price found in Australia!
The Hanging Bubble Chair, also known as the Hanging Ball Chair, was originally designed by Eero Aarnio in 1968 by using one of the simplest geometric forms – the ball.
Constructed with a clear acrylic dome and chrome steel frame, our Hanging Bubble Chair reproductions are made to the highest standards with the best materials sourced globally. A 2m heavy duty chain and designer black cushions are supplied with the chair.
Check out our new Bubble Chair product page:
http://www.milandirect.com.au/shop/Hanging-Bubble-Chair/
We'll be looking to add more products to our range early next year, so keep on sending us your feedback, it's much appreciated!
All the best, Milan Direct
Posted at 11:37 a.m. on November 6, 2008
Graham Edwards says...
How about the Eileen Gray room divider? the black lacquer multi-tiled one.
Posted at 3:32 p.m. on November 22, 2008
Milan Direct says...
Hi Graham,
Thanks for your feedback. At this stage we are trying to bring in smaller products to allow for easier shipping AUS wide. However if we get enough interest for Room Dividers we will look to add as well. In Jan / Feb 09 we will be launching many new products in our range, so keep an eye out on our website for updates.
All the best - Milan Direct
Posted at 10:57 a.m. on November 24, 2008
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