Bellini Modern Living Spotlights Expanding Italian Production in High Point

Bellini Modern Living, a wholesaler and distributor of modern Italian furniture based in Canada, is continuing to move its furniture production to Italy as evidenced by key introductions at the High Point Market this spring.

 

The company re-emphasized dining and occasional furniture this season, and in particular, new occasional tables produced for the first time in Italy. “Until now, all of our occasional furniture has been made in China,” said Hossein Azimi, president, “but that changed with the Spring Market and our introduction of five new occasional groups. Currently, more than 80 percent of our entire product line is produced in Italy, and while we cannot get out of China entirely yet, our mission over the next two years is to phase out production in Asia altogether.”

 

According to Azimi, the move is not only driven by obstacles in the supply chain and global politics, but by storytelling for the brand. “The simple fact is that we’ve become known for the high style and quality of Italian products. We have the largest inventory of Italian goods in North America,” he said, “and we’ve become known for our ability to ship them from Canada to our warehouse in the U.S. in 48 hours. This is what differentiates us, and it only makes sense for us to continue building on this success story.”

 

Among the Italian-produced occasional intros were five groups of three coffee tables in different heights, sizes and shapes featuring ceramic tops. The tables are designed to be sold both as trios, or separately and retail for $799 to $1199. 

 

“We were one of the first manufacturers in North America to introduce dining tables with ceramic tops to the Market about nine years ago from Italy,” Azimi said. “We’ve had incredible success with ceramic in dining, because the tops are practical, easy to clean and live with, and they add a lot of character to our dining table designs. Those have been so successful, it simply made sense to move ceramic tops beyond the dining room into occasional designs for the family room and other spaces in the home. In doing so, we chose to move production to Italy. Simply put, there are finishes and extra details in both design and craftsmanship in these occasional groups that are just not possible to accomplish anywhere but Italy.”

 

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