Shopping for furniture is like buying a really nice watch, says Antoine Roset, president of Ligne Roset USA. It's a decision that's not taken lightly. "You think twice. You look at it several times. You're buying it now, but you know it's forever — almost."
For 150 years, the French family-owned company has been building high-quality home furnishings for customers around the world. After leaving the Houston market two years ago in a dispute with a former authorized distributor, Ligne Roset returned in a big way about 13 months ago, with a 5,200 square-foot store in West Ave owned by Adam and Brittany Branscum, who also own a store in Oklahoma City.
Ruby Red is a color "people can picture in their homes or apartments. It is easy to decorate around, like white. Everything matches with red."
"We already have (a store) in Dallas. We try to develop more," says company CFO Pierre Roset, hinting that Texas is ripe for expansion.
The father-and-son duo recently visited Houston to check in on the store, discuss furniture trends and explain the difference between American and European furniture buyers. Because American homes are much larger than European homes, Americans tend, naturally, to buy larger pieces of furniture and want a lot of options.
"If you say, 'That's all there is,' they won't buy anything," Antoine says. "You have to say, 'If you don't like this, you can have it with or without arms, with or without stitching, in this color or that color, to fit the height.' You have to give all of the options."
On both sides of the Atlantic, furniture buyers are increasingly conscious about quality. "They want to know how it's made, whose doing it, if it's eco-friendly or not. They want to go with the original instead of a knock-off because they know how it's made and what's behind it," says Antoine. "This is where we can share our experience about what we do with our clients. We can tell you a story about single every piece in this room."
And customers want bold colors, particularly in the ultra-contemporary pieces that Ligne Roset specializes in. Ruby Red is the No. 1 color in terms of sales. It's a color "people can picture in their homes or apartments," Antoine says. "It is easy to decorate around, like white. Everything matches with red."
Green is also growing in popularity, due to more eco-conscious attitudes. Even bright yellows, neon oranges and deep blues sell well, but only if they are featured in the showroom where customers can see the sofas in the unorthodox shades. "We like to show this because it's the only way to tell people you can have colors in your home," says Antoine.
Among new items the Rosets are excited about are a longer-and-wider Togo chaise, a recliner designed by Japanese designer Toshiyuki Kita, a new line of contemporary wall pieces made of sawn oak, called Etc., and a more comfortable sectional stuffed with goose down, called "Nils" in homage to the classic children's book, The Wonderful Adventures of Nils, by Selma Lagerlöf, that features a young boy who rides on the back of a wild goose.
"It has a fluffy effect. When you get in, you don't want to get out," says Pierre.
Few companies have been in business as long as Ligne Roset. Antoine jokes that typically the first generation starts a business and the third generation sells it. "We're the fourth and fifth generation, so we are set on it," Antonie says.
"We feel like we have crossed the river," Pierre says.
Pierre Roset, left, and Antoine Roset lounge on a Togo houndstooth chaise lounge in the Ligne Roset showroom.
