Case
Case was founded by Paul Newman in 2006. After graduating from Hornsey College of Art in 1981 with a BA Furniture degree, Newman launched his first business Bonomi Design alongside two college friends in North London. They designed and made products for a variety of clients including Liberty’s, Heal’s & Ron Arad. In 1988, the company received a grant to exhibit their range of stools and chairs at the prestigious Milan Furniture Fair. It was here that Paul met Australian retailer Aero, who had five successful stores across the country. Excited about Paul’s new collection, Aero started to produce the product range under licence.
In 1989, Paul’s entrepreneurial business acumen led to the opening of a UK franchise of Aero in Westbourne Grove, West London, selling an eclectic mix of contemporary furniture, lighting and accessories. With its adventurous and eclectic collection, Aero soon rose to prominence, and by 1998, Aero was a shop, retail and wholesale business selling to high end design stores such as Heals and the Conran shop. Ahead of its time in many ways, the business also included a successful mail-order catalogue.
Aero was sold in 1999, and Newman went on to set up the eponymous design brand Case with more than 20 years of experience in design, manufacturing and retail behind him. The motivation behind Case was simple: to create authored product at affordable prices using modern manufacturing techniques. The initial product range included pieces by Matthew Hilton, Terrence Woodgate, Naz Kamali, formerly the creative director at Aero. These collections are now carried in some of the most prestigious retail stores across the world.