Calligaris

PurplePrice Mag · October 26, 2026 · 2 min read

Calligaris was born in one of the heartlands of the Italian chair: Manzano, in Friuli, some fifteen kilometres from Udine. In a century it has grown from a small craft workshop into a group that designs and distributes chairs, tables, beds, sofas, furniture and accessories all over the world.

The Marocca chair and the automatic rush-weaving machine

The company was founded in 1923 by Antonio Calligaris. At first it made chairs by hand, above all the Marocca, the typical rush-seated chair of the area. After the war Manzano became the centre of the Friulian chair district and Calligaris turned into an industry: in 1960 it was the first to introduce an automatic rush-weaving machine, cutting the time needed to seat a chair from two hours to less than two minutes. For many years it worked mainly for third parties, supplying chairs to other furniture companies and to large retailers.

The Calligaris brand

Under the founder's son, Romeo, the company went on making only chairs, up to 1,500 a day. The turning point came in 1985 with the third generation, the brothers Walter and Alessandro Calligaris: work for third parties was gradually dropped and products were sold under the company's own name. Tables and armchairs joined the chairs, followed, with a growing focus on design, by a complete range for the home, from beds to cabinets, from rugs to lamps. The oval Orbital table became its signature piece, and the upholstered Annie and Stockholm chairs were also successful.

Going abroad and acquisitions

Calligaris opened a subsidiary in the United States, in North Carolina, and new factories in Friuli and in Croatia. To grow abroad it sold 40% for some years to the L Capital fund, linked to the LVMH group, and in 2014 it bought the stake back. Meanwhile it opened single-brand stores in many countries and launched Connubia, a mid-range brand for chairs and tables. In 2017 it acquired a majority of Ditre Italia, an upholstery maker from Treviso, and in 2018 control passed to the private equity fund Alpha, with the family remaining a shareholder. In 2019 came Luceplan, the Milanese lighting company behind the Costanza and Hope lamps: a step towards the idea of an Italian design hub.