Jan des Bouvrie is a household name in the Netherlands. His parents owned a furniture shop in Bussum. After graduating from the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam he eveloped his signature style with clean lines and a lot of white. Jan des Bouvrie made design affordable and more familiar to the general public.
His first design to go into production for Gelderland, in 1969, was sofa 430, in the Netherlands better known as the ‘Kubusbank’. It became a design classic. Both Jan himself and many of his designs have won prestigious prizes. In 1993, he and his wife Monique established leading interior and lifestyle store Het Arsenaal, where Jan also has his design studio. He not only designs furniture but also industrial products,
and he caries out interior and architectural projects all over the world. ‘I got to know Jan te Lintelo when he worked as a representative for Pastoe. After that he started working as sales manager for Rohé, a Dutch cane factory, and then became sales director at the Gelderland Group.