Richard Munao established Cult Furniture in 1997 with three Scandinavian brands. It has since expanded to five stores across Australia and New Zealand, representing many influential furniture brands. Munao travels yearly to the Milan Design Week to source new products and observe trends. He has advocated against replica furniture by founding the Authentic Design Alliance and lobbying for stronger laws. Cult supports emerging Australian and New Zealand designers through its Our Design Journey program. Despite changes in the industry, Munao believes Cult still has potential for growth.

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O
f the many items of exquisite beauty that furniture curator,
Richard Munao has around him, it is fitting a crystal ball is not
among them.
This is largely because foresight has always been one of the
52-year-old’s more consistent companions.
It was there when, as a teen, he defied his Italian father and Greek
mother’s advice to pursue his dream of becoming a certified
cabinet-maker.
It was present, when nearly 20 years ago, he poured every penny
he could scrape together to open up a high-end furniture business
in a Sydney suburb better known for its gang warfare than for its
commercial enterprise.
And it was front and centre when the Cult chief executive persuaded
an up-and-coming Danish brand by the name of the Republic of
Franz Hansen that he was the man who could convince Australians
of the value to be unearthed in its product.
But there has always been method to his madness.
By fully committing both himself and his design nous to his
business, Munao is today at the helm of a burgeoning and
successful retail empire of five stores with representation across six
states and two countries.
With additional distributors in Canberra, Adelaide and Perth, Cult
works with some of the world’s most influential furniture and
lighting producers with prominent Scandinavian brands HAY, Carl
Hansen & Sons and Erik Jorgenson, popular Italian labels Poltrona
Frau, Cassina and Cappellini and award-winning Antipodeans Tim
Webber and Henry Wilson among its impressive portfolio.
As if that were not enough proof of Munao’s purchasing prowess,
he counts among his collection a unique precious metal item
that no amount of money can buy – having been named the 2011
recipient of His Royal Highness Prince Henrik’s Medal of Honour in
recognition of his work in promoting Danish exports.
Seeking to cater to both residential and commercial markets, Munao
established Cult (which formerly traded as Corporate Culture) in a
two-level 800 square metre manufacturing space in the inner west
suburb of Chippendale in 1997. Annointing himself head buyer from
day one, he selected Erik Jorgensen, Republic of Fritz Hansen and
Stelton as the store’s foundation brands.
Clearly striking a chord with Sydneysiders excited by the prospect of
being exposed to a new breed of furniture designers, the business
grew organically opening in Melbourne in 1999, Brisbane in 2005 and
making its way across the Tasman to Auckland four short years later.
In receipt of regular stock consignments, Munao remains in charge
of the bulk of the buying for the stores with input from his various
showroom managers. Each year he takes a small team to Italy to
attend the Milan Design Week – considered the biggest event on the
global design calendar where seasonal trends are observed and the
majority of the year’s purchasing decisions are made.
“The bulk of our designs are sourced from Denmark and Italy – two
countries that both have strong design culture and have produced
some of the world’s best designs. A lot of the most iconic Italian
and French design that today are carried by brands like Cassina,
were designed in the 1920's and 1930's such as LC collection by Le
Corbusier, Charlotte Perriand and Pierre Jeanneret,” he says.
“After that, the 1950's and 1960's were a very prolific time for
design in Denmark with designers such as Hans J Wegner, Poul
Kjaerholm and Arne Jacobsen leading the charge. The beauty of
all these designs is that a LC4 chaise longue from 1928, Wishbone
chair from 1949 and the Swan chair from 1955 are still as relevant
and contemporary today as the time they were designed. All these
designs have stood the test of time, and that’s what makes them
true design icons.”
Authenticity is the trait that binds each member of the Cult family,
yet despite this, one of the secrets to the Cult phenomenon is that
each brand has its own unique personality and quality.
While Carl Hansen & Son and PP Mobler are the hallmarks for
modern Danish timber furniture, brands such as Magis continuously
push the boundaries of innovation and technology by working with
plastic, steel, iron or even a combination of materials, he says.
Owing to the diversity of its offering, Cult’s price points are equally
varied where the design conscious can pick up a HAY Clip Clip for
around $14 to a Cappellini Progetti Compiuti chest of drawers that
retails for $72,900.
Munao says the industry has changed significantly since he started
out – most notably in the merging of commercial and residential
furniture. Now, more than ever,there is demand for break-out,
multi-functional furniture, furniture to suit smaller spaces as well as
sustainable furniture.

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But great design is “not about design for disassembly or out of
recycling materials”, he has been quoted as saying. “It’s about
design for longevity – to transcend the seasons and the trends.”
Being prepared to go it alone has also proved something of a pitfall
to all Australian retailers looking to claim a stake in the fiercely
competitive furniture market, with the growing creep of replicas
flooding the market.
While the UK recently enforced penalties of up to £50,000 and 10
years jail for anyone selling fake furniture, no such laws exist in
this country. It is generally accepted that Australia lags behind
in legislating this area as manufacturers of ‘fakes’ are allowed to
market their design copies here as long as they are named ‘replica’.
It is a subject that gets Munao hot under the collar, so much so that,
aside from being a regular lobbyist, he is also the founding partner
of the Authentic Design Alliance and a regular contributor to panel
discussions seeking to better educate the market.
Speaking to leading industry website, The Future of Space in 2014,
Munao claimed that it took courage and investment for designers
and manufacturers of original designs to bring products to market;
for as many products that are successful there are products that do
not succeed.
“Authentic, original design is important in many ways. Most original
and authentic pieces have a greater life span than ‘replica furniture’,
which is a more long term, sustainable option for our environment.
Authenticity rewards the original designer with income through the
sales of the product they designed and it encourages all designers
to innovate.
“To me it seems criminal that one can sit on the fence and wait
for an original to sell and then copy it; essentially this is theft of
intellectual property,” he told the site.
Partly to meet the insatiable demand for innovation within the
sector and partly because Munao feels compelled to give back to
the industry that has already offered him so much, Cult is actively
involved in discovering and mentoring emerging Australian and New
Zealand design talent.
It launched its unique design program - Our Design Journey - in
2004, which gives designers throughout Australia and New Zealand
the opportunity to have their designs produced. Former winners
include Gavin Harris, Lisa Dinham & Angela Ferguson, and Richard
Harrod while the 2016 winner is Zachary Hannah whose light design
is currently being prototyped.
Munao has further diversified the business over the past two
to three years, starting up his own Cult brand, designed and
manufactured in Australia but which will soon be launched in
South East Asia, as well as launching an Australian-made AGxCult
collection, designed by local talent Adam Goodrum, that Cult intends
debuting internationally.
In addition, Munao also runs a program, dubbed Cultivated, which is
a unique product stewardship program providing refurbishment and
buy-back options of its furniture to clients.
Yet, despite the uncertainty of the global marketplace and turmoil
within the retail sector, Munao believes there is still much to be
achieved by the brands for which he is caretaker.
Late last year, he opened the first mono-branded HAY shop in
Sydney’s Surry Hills - a fitting tribute given that he was the first to
commit distributing the brand outside of Europe. It was also the
realisation of a dream that Munao had when the brand was first
launched in 2002.
Plans are also in the pipeline to celebrate Cult’s 20-year anniversary
by renovating its Chippendale headquarters and transforming it into
an event-space for functions, photo shoots and exhibitions.
“I am proud of where we are today. Looking back over the last 20
years, it’s been such an exciting journey, yet I still believe that Cult
has so much more potential to grow as a business.”