Every other week, together with Sjiek / Het Belang Van Limburg, we present a Limburg design icon, or one that is well on its way to becoming one. This week it is Natal from Studio Segers for Tribù.

WHAT: The Natal chair is a minimalist outdoor chair where Batyline is combined with a stainless steel frame.

YEAR: 1999

Wim Segers, from Maaseik, started Studio Segers exactly 30 years ago. He focused on product design, his wife Rita Westhoven on the graphic design. His outspoken no-nonsense style translates into numerous commercially successful designs for – often companies from Limburg – such as Vasco, Indera, Tribù and, by now, quite a few international labels.

PRASLIN

In the early 1990s, teak garden furniture was booming. Lode De Cock was a major importer of the this furniture in Zutendaal. Because it was important for his company “De Cock Furniture” to develop his own identity, designer Wim Segers was engaged. Right up his alley. It led to the first elegant “Praslin” collection. “A fairly classic but straight to the point teak chair, less bulky and actually perfect for both inside and outside,” recalls Wim Segers.

TEAK 2

After this first collaboration, a very close relationship between the two is created, like almost every company Studio Segers designs for. This has not just to do with the commercial success their designs bring, but especially the (long-term) vision of the designer. “After the Praslin we came up with a stackable variant, Pure, but I mainly wanted to combine new materials, such as a stainless steel frame on which we then applied teak slats,” says Wim Segers. “That became the Natal.”

SUCCESS

The Natal was launched in 1999 and the reactions were immediately enthusiastic. The chair almost instantly received a Henry Van de Velde design label and also won the public award, but the success was also decisive for Lode De Cocks company, which in the meantime was renamed to Tribù.

The Natal grew into a collection with a table, lounge chair, club chair,… but the chairs have in any case contributed to the growth of Tribù as a global player. To this day, an average of 2,500 units of the Natal are sold every year. That means that a set of 6 chairs is sold every day, somewhere in one of the more than 65 countries where Tribù is active.

The design remained unchanged until 2010. Since the restyling, aluminum is no longer used as a stainless steel frame. “Interesting because it is a much lighter material and, moreover, recyclable. The shape of the chair has not changed much except for a few roundings. ”In the meantime, there is also a Natal sofa and the new version will be presented in Milan in April.

The Natal Alu chair has a target price of 625 euros. www.tribu.com I www.studiosegers.be

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