Match Made in Heaven – District and Mattiazzi

Words by Vaishnavi Nayel Talawadekar

Australian design brand District has long championed sustainable design, supporting and collaborating with responsible, environmentally sensitive makers from across the world. Its 10-year partnership with Italian sustainable furniture brand Mattiazzi is testament to this ethos. Recently, in commemoration of their decade-long association, District’s Sydney showroom opened its doors to patrons, inviting them to participate in workshops that showcased Mattiazzi’s thoughtful product life cycles.

Since its inception in 1979, Mattiazzi’s methods of procuring, certifying and caring for wood have been underpinned by an upstanding ethical code. The family-run company is intentional about partnering with considerate designers, as well as sourcing wood and creating furniture in a sensitive, sustainable way. Its overarching motivation is to reduce its carbon footprint while simultaneously embracing new perspectives, challenges and trajectories. This was the underlining theme of the workshops that took place at District’s Sydney showroom earlier this year. Personally curated and helmed by Mattiazzi’s Sales and Marketing Director, Cristina Salvati, the intent was to offer patrons an authentic insight into the factory in Italy and showcase the brand’s minimum-waste approach to creating products.

The Italian furniture maker’s commitment to sustainable design is matched by its commitment to high quality.

As consumers become more environmentally conscious, Mattiazzi is investing in machinery powered by rooftop solar panels and conservation techniques beyond what might be expected of a family-run factory in Italy. Its wood sawing process is supported by vacuum drying, a system that helps balance moisture content, increase resistance to biological decay and augment the longevity of the product. Likewise, its 12-axis CNC machines afford zero defects and greater accuracy, in turn, minimising raw material waste and ensuring greater personnel safety. Mattiazzi’s hallmark is that every single product is sanded individually and undergoes stringent quality control to guarantee the best possible craftsmanship.

The Italian furniture maker’s commitment to sustainable design is matched by its commitment to high quality. Its products are built to stand the test of time, with oiling and finishing that helps shield them from wear and tear and elemental damage. Importantly, these processes involve no toxic or aggressive chemicals, ensuring a safe environment for craftsmen. In a similar vein, the company keeps plastic to a bare minimum and any waste is automatically absorbed into its biomass heating system, which heats up the facility through a pipeline while also purifying the air circulating indoors.

In the past 12 years, Mattiazzi has collaborated with noted designers including Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, Nitzan Cohen, Konstantin Grcic, Sam Hecht and Kim Colin, Jasper Morrison, Leon Ransmeier, Foster + Partners, Inga Sempé, Julien Renault, Julie Richoz and Max Frommeld, to name a few. What unites these names is their respectful approach to wood and considered regard for its usage. For District, parlaying the Mattiazzi legacy into the next decade is an exciting opportunity to present next-generation design to a greater audience and, as such, inspire customers to honour their homes and their environment in equal spirit.