Hjelle

Norvegian furniture maker since 1945.

« Our story » by Dag Hjelle, owner and third generation

Every day we write new chapters. But some days we open the book just to read an old chapter – all over again. This is our story, our legacy. Some are short stories of action; some are long novels of adventures. And some of the main characters were like superheroes. Driven by passion and pride, showing courage and humbleness.

The first chapters were written as early as in the 1940’s. Life along the elongated Norwegian coast was tough. Located between deep fjords and majestic mountains the farmers in the small village of Sykkylven started to build furniture in barns or cellars to ensure their own livelihood. They were everyday heroes. My grandfather, Lars Karl Hjelle, was one of these pioneers. The initial wish to provide more jobs led Lars Karl to found LK Hjelle in 1945.

We are storytellers, and the chief ingredients in all our stories are form, quality and comfort. We like to call them our main chapters, and they are meant to last for generations to come. High quality and comfort was vital to the first generation, and they are still one of the most important part of our heritage. True craftsmanship runs in our blood.

Our aim is to create beautiful, timeless Scandinavian pieces. Being a Norwegian family business producing furniture to an international marked requires courage. Maybe even a little heroism. Our close cooperation with both young Norwegian and international designers, has made Hjelle known for innovative furniture design. And on this subject we constantly write new chapters.

Even though we continue our adventure and strive to tell new stories, we are proud to say that our furniture is still made at our own factory in Sykkylven, Norway. This is a chapter we don’t want to rewrite. We are convinced that it is only in this way that we can create and design pieces that will last for generations to come – in form, quality and comfort.

Every day, we write new chapters. Driven by the passion and pride to continue our legacy as a third generation company. And our story is still about everyday heroes.