Hjort Knudsen

What Hjort Knudsen does

Hjort Knudsen A/S is a Danish family-owned upholstered furniture manufacturer founded in 1973 (with roots in a 1968 home-based pencil-case and school-bag business started by Ina and Arne Hjort Knudsen) and headquartered in Tarm, West Jutland, Denmark. The company designs, manufactures, and distributes a broad portfolio of comfort chairs (armchairs), sofas, and — since 2018 — upholstered beds, supported by extensive customization options including multiple sizes, modules, seat depths, firmness levels, and over 400 design combinations across 78+ textile types in 420 colors and patterns, 5 leather types in 52 colors, and various wood and metal finishes. Its underlying production platform rests on in-house manufacture of moulded cold-cure foam cushions, steel and wooden frames, and No-sag spring systems, augmented by patented comfort techniques developed and owned by the company. Manufacturing takes place across the company's own European plants totaling 90,000 m2 and employing 2,300-2,600 skilled workers, with production facilities in Denmark, Poland (since 2000), Ukraine (since 2010), and the United Kingdom.

Hjort Knudsen operates a pure B2B go-to-market, selling exclusively through recognized furniture retail stores rather than direct to consumers. Distribution is supported by dedicated sales and support offices in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Holland, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, Austria, and Poland, plus a US sales subsidiary (Hjort Knudsen US Inc. in Palm Beach, Florida). Products are delivered via the company's own truck fleet and container-based logistics, and marketing is conducted primarily through major European and international furniture trade fairs (e.g., IMM Cologne, NEC Birmingham, Salone del Mobile Milano, High Point, Furniture China) and digital catalog content. Revenue is generated through wholesale hardware sales to retail channel partners; pricing is not publicly disclosed. The customer base consists of mid-market furniture retailers and, indirectly, end consumers purchasing custom-built upholstered furniture. Leadership has remained in the founding family across generations, with Klaus Hjort Knudsen and his wife Ellen Mønsted assuming management in 1997.

Name

Hjort Knudsen

Legal name

Hjort Knudsen A/S

Website

https://hjortknudsen.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tarm

HQ country

Denmark

HQ region

Europe

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Furniture Manufacturing and Sales: Hjort Knudsen designs, manufactures and sells upholstered furniture (chairs, sofas, beds) through B2B channel partners (furniture retailers). Products are delivered via their own lorries and container-based sales.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Hjort Knudsen designs, manufactures, and distributes upholstered furniture — primarily sofas, comfort chairs (armchairs), and beds — to furniture retail stores across Europe. Production takes place at the company's own European manufacturing facilities using self-produced cold cure foam, steel and wooden frames, and a wide range of textile, leather, wood, and metal finishes, with extensive customization in sizes, modules, firmness, and design.

Product overview

Hjort Knudsen is a Danish family-owned furniture manufacturer founded in 1973 that designs, manufactures, and supplies upholstered furniture. The company operates a B2B model, selling exclusively through authorized furniture retailers across Europe. The core product portfolio consists of three main categories: comfort chairs (armchairs), sofas, and beds—all upholstered with cold cure foam and/or down. These products are built on shared components manufactured in-house, including moulded foam cushions and steel/wooden frames with No-sag springs. The company offers extensive customization through a wide selection of textiles (78+ types in 420 colors/patterns), leather (5 types in 52 colors), and wood/metal options for legs and feet. The company holds several patented techniques for comfort improvement and produces at its own European manufacturing facilities spanning 90,000 m2 with approximately 2,600 employees.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Comfort Chairs (Armchairs)
• Sofas
• Beds Upholstered beds with extensive customization including measurements, construction, headboard styles, firmness levels, surface coatings, and leg styles; sold to furniture retailers across Europe.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• SOS Children's Village BrovaryminorOthers · 1 January 2010Hjort Knudsen supports the SOS Children's Village in Brovary, 20 km from Kiev in Ukraine. This is part of their multi-year corporate social responsibility initiative supporting children in the countries where they have primary manufacturing operations.
• SOS Children's Village SiedlceminorOthers · 1 January 2010Hjort Knudsen supported the SOS Children's Village Siedlce in Eastern Poland from 2010 to 2019 as part of their social responsibility program in manufacturing regions.
• Knæk Cancer CampaignminorOthersHjort Knudsen supports the Knæk Cancer (Fight Cancer) campaign as part of their corporate social responsibility initiatives.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• BoConcept: Danish premium furniture brand operating a global franchise retail network with strong customisation in upholstered seating. Comparable Danish heritage, design-led positioning, and configurability offering.
• Innovation Living: Danish manufacturer of upholstered sofa beds and design-led seating, B2B-focused with European retailer distribution. Comparable customer base, product overlap in upholstered seating, and export-driven sales model.
• Poltrona Frau: Italian premium upholstered furniture maker (now under the Haworth group), serving residential and contract markets globally. Comparable in craftsmanship emphasis and upholstered leather seating focus.
• Rolf Benz: German premium upholstered furniture manufacturer selling through European furniture retailers. Comparable mid-market scale, similar B2B retail motion, and emphasis on engineering/comfort.
• Himolla: German upholstered seating specialist (recliners, sofas, lift-and-rise chairs) selling through European retail stores. Comparable engineering-led comfort positioning and B2B retail distribution model.
• Koinor: German manufacturer of upholstered sofas and recliners, distributed through furniture retail channels in Europe. Closely comparable product specialization in motion upholstery and B2B retailer sales model.
• Natuzzi: Italian-listed global upholstered furniture manufacturer and multi-brand retailer. Operates an integrated manufacturing-plus-retail model in the same core category (upholstered sofas/chairs) at larger international scale.
• Walter Knoll: German premium seating and upholstered furniture brand (part of the Vitra Group), supplied through high-end retail and contract channels. Comparable craftsmanship-led positioning and European B2B distribution.
• Eilersen: Danish high-end upholstered furniture manufacturer founded in 1895, supplying retail stores across Europe via B2B channels. Most direct Danish analogue to Hjort Knudsen in scale, model, and product mix.

Broad incumbents

• Man Wah Holdings: Hong Kong-listed, China-based global upholstered furniture manufacturer at significantly larger scale (MLS sofa brand). Comparable in core product category (upholstered motion sofas and recliners) but operates at far greater volume and with broader geographic reach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HjortKnudsenIN

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hjort Knudsen