Molteni&C
Ninety years of contemporary elegance
Molteni was founded in 1934 in Giussano as an artisan carpentry company. Right from the start, knowledge of traditional workmanship allowed the company to identify the search for quality and attention to technological progress as its focal points.
The desire for change in the 1960s pushed Molteni to change with society, translating its needs into furniture through a design process conceived as pure planning. Molteni began to transform into a modern company, growing through collaboration with designers and the acquisition of office and kitchen furniture companies. Molteni has grown into a group that is capable of bringing its unmistakable style and craftsmanship to furniture and contract projects, all over the world.
Molteni style through its designers
The sobriety and the warmth conveyed by Molteni&C furniture transcend the personal style of the designers who collaborate with the brand. The Molteni identity is such that it succeeds in merging and synthesizing individual styles to create a unique aesthetic that envisions the home as “cozy, warm and reassuring.”
Part of this vision of refined, quality design are some of the leading international designers and architect, such as Herzog & de Meuron, Foster + Partners, Michael Anastassiades, Jean Nouvel, Jasper Morrison, and Ron Gilad, as well as masters of Italian style such as Gio Ponti, Tobia Scarpa, Rodolfo Dordoni, Ferruccio Laviani, and Aldo Rossi.
Iconic designs by Molteni&C
- Foster + Partners. The design firm collaborates with Molteni&C. with projects featuring innovative materials. These include the Ava Table, the Arc table with a lightweight concrete base, the Teso coffee table, and the Vicino Table coffee tables.
- Rodolfo Dordoni. The celebrated Milanese designer has created collections for dining room and bedroom systems in which technology plays an important but hidden role. Designs created for Molteni include the Gliss Master-Blend and Beauté closets, the understated British elegance of the Kensington, Piccadilly, and Chelsea armchairs, and the Gatwick and Old Ford tables.
- Vincent van Duysen. The Belgian designer has served as the company's creative director since 2016 and has designed furniture from an architectural perspective, creating some of Molteni's best-loved sofas, such as Augusto, Lucio, and Octave, as well as the Mateo table, Gillis and Petalo armchairs, the Anton and the Ribbon beds.
- Gio Ponti. The promoter of industrial design, a supporter of the democratic and modernity of mass production. Ponti is the author of memorable furniture, produced in small series or for private projects, and repurposed exclusively by Molteni since 2012. These include the D.154.2 armchairs (Compasso d'oro for product lifetime achievement), D.153.1 and Round, the D.859.1 table, and the Molteni coffee tables series D.555.1 and D.552.2. All objects in which the Ponti style shines through in all its modernity and class.
- Patricia Urquiola. Her style is a mix of the Milanese rigor of her training and the flair of her Spanish origins. Prominent among her completed projects is the Molteni Diamond table with origami-style details, winner of the 2005 Red Dot Award.
- Aldo Rossi. His works have made design history, with projects strongly influenced by his training as an architect and urban planner: the Piroscafo glass cabinet, inspired by a former confectionery factory, and the Carteggio secrétaire cabinet.