DON Furniture

DON Furniture represents an exciting chapter in New Zealand’s mid-century design story. Known for beautifully proportioned lounge furniture, elegant timber frames and ingenious convertible designs, DON helped bring the clean, optimistic language of international modernism into New Zealand homes during the 1960s and 1970s.

The story began in Australia in 1927, when Hyman Don established a furniture business specialising in living-room furniture. By the early 1960s, DON had crossed the Tasman and was establishing a distinctly New Zealand identity. In 1962, Don Industries acquired a half share in local manufacturer Craftex Ltd, expanding production in New Zealand. Around the same period the Australian business evolved into DON REX, while furniture here continued to carry the simple DON name.

DON flourished during a particularly creative moment in New Zealand design. Ranges including Danart, Princess and Halden embraced lighter forms, exposed timber and relaxed ways of living, while clever Nite ’n’ Day furniture transformed from sophisticated seating into occasional beds. Period advertising perfectly captured the ambition: DON promised the “cool, clean line of international design.”

Check out this classic 1960s Don TV commercial to see the brand in action.

Through the 1960s, DON became part of the important Felt & Textiles, later Feltex, furniture stable alongside Vono and Cintique. In 1972 the story evolved again, with Airest Industries taking over Feltex’s Penrose furniture operation and continuing the DON brand.

Today, the best DON pieces feel remarkably fresh. Beautifully made, practical and unmistakably of their era, they capture a confident moment when New Zealand furniture design was looking outward and finding its own modern voice.