When Italian born Lucian R Ercolani moved from Italy to London’s East End in 1898, at the age of ten, who would have known that by the 1920s he would have established what would become an iconic furniture business that celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2020?
Having left his homeland behind, Lucian struggled to learn to speak English and found his schoolwork hard. As a consequence, he left school as soon as he was able, working as a messenger boy. When he was 18, whilst on his deliveries, he saw a poster advertising furniture design courses at the Shoreditch Technical College. His father, who worked as a carpenter, was keen for his son to learn new skills and encouraged him to enrol on the course. Taking drawing and design classes, Lucian later entered the City & Guild exams in design theory and furniture construction.
By 1910 he was invited by Harry Parker who was part of Frederick Parker Furniture (later to become Parker-Knoll) to work with them. This resulted in a move to High Wycombe which, at that time, was the epicentre of furniture design and manufacturing in England due to the abundance of beech wood growing in the surrounding Chiltern Hills coupled with good transport links. Just ten years later, Lucian obtained financial backing from local business associates, and he established Furniture Industries now known as ercol Furniture.
Lucian wanted to design and produce furniture that was relevant to his customers and honest in both its design and manufacturing. Design and people became the cornerstone of his business, and this ethos remains today. Two of Lucian’s son went into the business, which is now run by Lucian’s great-grandson Henry Tados. Many generations of employees have also remained with the firm over the generations.
In 1932 Lucian had an opportunity to expand his business when he was offered the chance to take over Walter Skulls Ltd, a local firm making high class chairs. This part of the business continues today and is sometimes still referred to as Skulls.
When World War II was declared, instead of making furniture the factory was used to make over 25,000 tent pegs daily along with munition boxes and other supplies. Lucian’s sons, Lucian B and Barry joined the Royal Airforce, both returning to the family business at the end of hostilities.
With the losses incurred during the war and raw materials extremely scarce, in order for people to re-establish their homes there was a demand for essential furniture items. In 1942 the Utility Furniture Scheme was established with the Furniture Committee producing a Utility Furniture catalogue a year later. With strict instructions to create well-designed furniture making the most of scarce resources, Lucian launched ercol’s 4a Kitchen Chair. When a year later in 1944, Lucian won a tender with the Board of Trade to supply 100,000 chairs – which were low cost and of good design – Lucian and his team were able to meet the order with a unit production cost of 10s 6d.
With the war over, Lucian’s sons were demobbed and appointed as joint Managing Directors, with Lucian taking on a role as Chair of the company. The mid-1940s saw the introduction of several ranges which are still synonymous with ercol today. In 1946 the Britain Can Make It exhibition held at the V&A Museum was the perfect place to showcase the new Windsor collection. As the company had become leading edge British furniture designers and manufacturers, ercol was also displayed at the 1951 Festival of Britain exhibition.
The 1950s saw the introduction of iconic ranges, many of which work well in today’s modern homes. A Loveseat made of an American elm seat with a beech frame and steam-bent top rail continues to inspire modern-day customers. Their Studio Coach sofa combining a large sofa which can be transformed into an occasional single bed has also stood the test of time. The Butterfly Chair is another iconic form; this time combining a traditional Windsor under-frame used preformed laminate to shape the back and seat. And, still part of ercol’s original collection, is the Stacking Chair produced in the thousands in the 1950s and 60s. These chairs allowed numerous chairs to be stacked vertically.
Over the decades innovative designs came to market. Exports were initiated in 1962 when Barry headed to Japan on a UK Board of Trade Mission, instigating a long-standing export market. Exports to other countries around the world followed.
The introduction of Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Cutting Edge Technology in the 1980s enabled high precision design coupled with volume manufacturing and fine detailing. With UK resources of elm becoming depleted following the devastating Dutch Elm outbreak in 1989 – a core material used in ercol’s furniture production – grey and red elm together with American oak was sourced and imported from Minnesota.
In 2002 ercol moved from its original factory in High Wycombe to premises in Princes Risborough. The company has continued to evolve: many of their key designs have remained constant since the 1950s but the way they are now made (using modern technology) has ensured the company’s longevity. The company has also formed a partnership with Grown in Britain (GiB), resourcing certified British ash from sustainable woodland.
Over the years ercol furniture has become collectable, with items ranging from modest sums for common pieces to thousands for rare or restored items – depending on age, condition and rarity. Its value lies in ercol furniture’s ability to withstand the test of time both in style and durability.
Nowadays, ercol furniture can be bought from over 150 stores in and around the UK, including John Lewis who have their own range of this iconic furniture. There is no doubt that ercol furniture works in both traditional and contemporary homes and can be considered a contemporary antique.
Information and images kindly supplied by ercol Furniture Limited. For further information visit ercol.com
