PROFILE

It was a moment of truth for 37-year-old Delhi entrepreneur Ashish Taneja. In April, 2009, when he went scouting for chic furniture in Salone Internazionale del Mobile (an upscale furniture fair in Milan) in an effort to do up his new home, a surprise awaited him.

There were scores of Indian architects, designers, traders, retailers and high-end consumers milling around, when a severe economic downturn had gripped the rest of the world. “That’s when I knew that the Indian consumer had evolved,” he says.

Zolijns, his plush furniture boutique and design house in Nizamuddin West, was born soon after to cater to this highly sophisticated and discerning set of consumers who know what they want. “Second generation business scions and young professionals are aware of global interior trends that are doing the rounds. Hence, they want their spaces to embody an international look,” he says.

Armed with sharp business acumen — he is a chartered accountant and a management graduate from IIM Ahmedabad — and fine design sensibilities, Taneja decided to give a facelift to Indian interiors. But that took him a while. In between he headed Vertex India, an integrated outsourcing firm. Then he launched his own company Growx Ventures, a management capital and advisory firm. Growx Ventures is the parent company of Zolijns.

At Zolijns, Taneja has two partners — Sourabh Gupta, who’s the head of design and Sheetal Bahl who takes care of the operations.

The 3,500sq ft store, which opened its doors in Delhi last month, resembles an apartment and is spread over three levels along with a terrace. Zolijns is divided into small living spaces that replicate real home environs. “The idea is to show how small spaces can be opened up or modified in an interesting manner,” says Taneja.

The store stocks up on international brands which stay on top of the game in their own arenas. For instance, Italian label Riva specialises in furniture made from reforested wood with natural finishes. You are given a sapling every time you make a purchase. The brand also gives a thumbs-up to form-aldehyde and other chemical solvent-free glues and stays clear of synthetic paints.

Another signature called Diamantini & Domeniconi is a leading clock brand. In Zolijns, one can browse through the brand’s entire range including everything from Murano glass and hand-made wire mesh clocks to four-piece clock sets that show the time in four different parts of the world.

Then there are several Italian brands like Mattiazzi for chairs and bespoke wood furniture, Artflex and Seven Salotti for handcrafted sofas, Frigerio Carlo for outdoor furniture and German label Ronald Schmitt for television racks and coffee tables among others.

Taneja plans to open a Zolijns outlet in Gurgaon soon and is looking at other retail channels like kiosks in popular malls of the Capital.

trends

Taneja says that the Indian furniture design market is slowly moving towards a contemporary and minimalistic look with an emphasis on creativity. European brands with their manufacturing excellence, technical knowhow and sophisticated aesthetics are occupying a niche space in the minds of the upscale buyer. “Stylish space-saving techniques are of utmost importance since most of us don’t have access to sprawling living areas,” he says.

Simultaneously, customisation happens to be hot. Most of the furniture in Taneja’s store is modular. So the sizes can be modified according to the space available.

There’s also an increased interest in papering and texturising of walls, says Taneja. Availability of a fantastic range of wallpapers at affordable rates is one of the reasons contributing to its growing popularity.

products

The stylish bathroom spaces, designed by Italian label Rapsel, are worth stopping by to see at Zolijns. The rear end of the mirror in this designer loo has been converted to a storage space and one can turn around the mirror to access it. Another new-age piece is an internally lit washbasin that’s made of acrylic. Another mirror graces the wall above the wash basin, with a tiny television screen placed in one of its corners, where one can catch the news while shaving. Price on request.

The Maui armchair by Riva made of scented cedar wood is a showstopper too. This hand-crafted item can be 75cm in diameter or more and flaunts on its entire surface concentric circles that are visible on the trunk of a mature cedar tree. The price of this armchair starts at Rs 2.25 lakh and can go up to Rs 3.5 lakh, depending on the size.

One cannot miss stools with a semi-precious stone tile veneer from the brand Odyssey that are casually strewn around the terrace of the store. The brilliant colours of stones like agate, malachite, tiger eye and jasper impart a unique sheen to outdoor furniture. The semi-precious stones cost around Rs 5, 000 per sq ft.