Who are we
OriginAsia was founded by 2 Swedes, a Korean and a Welshman. Aside from sounding like the introduction to a joke this multi-ethnic group has enabled OriginAsia to instil true international quality and design standards. With over 50 years in the Asia Pacific region, the founders have a deep understanding of the local geographies and cultures. We have used this knowledge and experience to ensure that the pain is removed from buying Asian furniture, arts, and accessories. Too often beautiful furnishings fail to meet minimum standards of workmanship and longevity. In the main this due to the premature use of traditional materials and shoddy production methods and quality control.
OriginAsia through constant vigilance and quality control ensures that the buying experience for our customers is one of ongoing enjoyment. To facilitate this experience we begin at the early stages of production, ensuring that quality materials from sustainable sources are used throughout our product range. Thereafter the workmanship of each item is closely scrutinised to ensure that only the highest, long-lasting techniques are used. This scrutiny extends to kiln drying, fumigation, packing and close supervision of all materials used un assembly whether it is the wax used or the thickness and quality of the bevelled glass.
What we do
Like many people, we at OriginAsia are enamoured with the beauty of Asian furnishings and artefacts. Quality teak and mahogany have an inherent beauty which can only be bettered by simple polishing. Similarly, traditional weaving techniques have their own symmetrical beauty which is enhanced through the use of natural materials such as seagrass, wicker and banana leaf.
Most of the countries where we source our items have deep traditions of detailed workmanship such as carving weaving and pottery. OriginAsia is proud to protect, display and promote these natural wonders.
However, we do recognise the limitations of some of the traditional designs. Oversize plantation chairs and huge rustic pieces are not easily transportable either physically or across cultural boundaries. At OriginAsia, we impart a contemporary design element to many pieces. Whether it be slimming down traditional bulky items or providing subtle modern curves and lines to older designs, our aim is to increase the usability of the items we display whilst protecting the inherent beauty of the materials and their workmanship. And to provide our customers with furnishings that will grace their homes for generations both aesthetically and from a quality perspective.
Our business principal
Our love of furniture is matched by our respect for the environment and our fellow citizens. To this end, OriginAsia only sells hardwood items that come from sustainable, managed plantations with the requisite certification. In our hands-on quality control initiatives, we sit for days with our manufacturers. We have a catalogue of the working conditions in each of our partner's workshops anyone is welcome to view this at our shop. Our close interaction with our producers enables to oversee that minimal working standards are adhered to. We pay fair prices to our suppliers and ensure that this is reflected in the salaries they pay to their workers, we will not participate in exploitative practices.
We offer fair prices to our customers, our dedication to quality, use of proprietary designs and establishment of an equitable operating environment necessitates that OriginAsia's prices will rarely be the lowest. Our exhaustive efforts to source the best quality goods enable us to provide quality, lasting products. As part of our goal to make sure the OriginAsia shopping experience pleasurable we offer free delivery of orders above $1,000 SGD within Singapore. We also have quick, easy and reasonable international shipping rates to anywhere in the world.