Muuto
Kristian Byrge and business partner Peter Bonnen, launched Muuto in 2006, commissioning pieces exclusively from architects and designers living and working in Nordic countries, with the goal of helping usher in a "great new era of Scandinavian design." In addition to building a successful brand (the company’s name is a play on the Finnish word muutos, which means "new perspective"), Byrge and Bonnen wanted to free up designers’ creativity by encouraging experimentation. "Our aim was to build on the strengths of Scandinavian design—functionality, craftsmanship, a no-nonsense and no-flashiness approach—and add something we didn’t feel was there: a wider range of materials, of colors, of personal expression." The resulting fleet of products, push the boundaries of "traditional" Scandinavian design with innovative materials and forms.
