HOWE

What HOWE does

HOWE a/s is a Danish privately-held contract furniture manufacturer founded in 1928, headquartered in Odense, Denmark, with a wholly-owned North American subsidiary (HOWE US Inc., Newport, Tennessee). The company designs and produces space-saving, stackable, and mobile furniture — including the flagship 40/4 chair family (David Rowland, 1964), SixE polypropylene shell chairs (Pearson Lloyd, 2012), MN1 meeting chairs (Morten Nikolajsen), AS100 (Andreas Störiko), eight table families (Tempest, Simpla, Moveo, Usu, Tutor, AS Table Series, Folding Surfaces, UXL), and Rova lounge seating — under the 'Moving Design' philosophy. Its proprietary engineering centres on benchmark flip-top mechanisms, high-density stacking (up to 40 chairs per dolly), single-person reconfigurability, and concealed castor systems, with products backed by 10-year guarantees and certified under ISO 14025 / EN 15804 EPDs plus Global GreenTag.

HOWE operates a B2B project sales model targeting architects, interior designers, and facility managers across seven customer verticals: Corporate, Education (primary), Healthcare, Hospitality, Places of Worship, Public Buildings, and Cultural Sites. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly listed, distributed through direct enterprise sales, customer-service inside-sales, the CET Configura specification platform, and a global project reference base spanning Europe, North America, and Oceania (e.g., Monash University, King's College London, Halley VI, Lyft, Roche Diagnostics Graz, San Quentin, St. Paul's Cathedral). The company has no disclosed funding, is founder/family-controlled, and emphasizes sustainability credentials (EPDs, recycled shells, design-for-disassembly, take-back programs) as a specification differentiator in green-building tenders.

Revenue is generated almost entirely through hardware sales of chairs, tables, lounge seating, and accessory modules (Numbra electronic numbering, OE Electrics/QIKPAC portable power integration). The 2024–2025 product cadence — Folding Surfaces (NeoCon 2024 Business Impact Award winner), Numbra app-controlled seating system, SixE recycled shells, and expanded EPD coverage — signals a strategy of evolving from a pure-mechanical furniture brand toward integrated, digitally-enabled, and circular-material offerings, while remaining anchored in the contract/institutional specification channel.

Name

HOWE

Legal name

HOWE a/s

Website

https://howe.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1928

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

HOWE a/s is a Danish B2B contract furniture manufacturer founded in 1928, producing space-saving stacking chairs, flip-top tables, and lounge seating for institutions, corporates, education, and public buildings across Europe, North America, and Oceania. The company sells through project-based specification sales, backed by EPD-certified sustainability credentials and a 10-year product guarantee.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Oddense

HQ country

Denmark

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Contract furniture sales: HOWE generates revenue through the sale of functional, space-saving furniture including chairs, tables, and lounge seating to institutional customers including universities, corporations, healthcare facilities, and public buildings. Products are sold with a 10-year guarantee.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

HOWE designs and manufactures functional, space-saving furniture including stacking chairs, flip-top tables, and modular lounge seating for institutional, corporate, education, healthcare, and public-sector buyers. The portfolio features proprietary space-saving mechanisms such as flip-top and high-density stacking, with products designed by notable industrial designers and offered with a 10-year guarantee and third-party sustainability certifications.

Product overview

HOWE (HOWE a/s) is a Danish furniture manufacturer founded in 1928, specializing in functional furniture for flexible spaces under the 'Moving Design' philosophy. The portfolio consists of four main chair families (40/4, SixE, MN1, AS100), eight table families (AS Table Series, Tempest, Simpla, Moveo, Usu, Tutor, Folding Surfaces, UXL), and one lounge seating line (Rova). The 40/4 (designed by David Rowland) is the flagship stacking chair dating to 1964, while SixE (Pearson Lloyd, 2012) is a modern polypropylene shell chair. Tables range from space-saving flip-top (Tempest, Simpla) to mobile training tables (Moveo) to stacking tables (Usu, Tutor). HOWE also offers digital accessories (Numbra electronic numbering) and portable power solutions. The company emphasizes sustainability with EPD certifications, GreenTag certification, and recycled material options.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Numbra: Electronic chair numbering system with app-controlled digital display designed for smart and flexible seat management, initially integrated with 40/4 chairs.

Products and services

• 40/4 Chair
• SixE Chair
• MN1 Chair
• AS100 Chair
• Tempest Table
• Simpla Table
• Moveo Table
• Usu Table
• Tutor Table
• AS Table Series
• Folding Surfaces
• UXL Table
• Rova Lounge Seating

Quantifiable outcome

• Carbon footprint up to 4 times smaller with recycled SixE shells compared to virgin plastic production
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Jones & PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHOWE partnered with Jones & Partners to design and develop the Folding Surfaces mobile double-folding bench desk, launched in 2024. The partnership created an innovative product concept for flexible workspace environments with integrated power solutions.
• Pearson LloydcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPearson Lloyd is the design studio behind the SixE chair family (launched 2012). The partnership has created one of HOWE's flagship product lines, with the SixE chair designed as a universal, long-lasting, and cradle-to-cradle solution.
• Komplot DesigncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKomplot Design (Boris Berlin & Poul Christiansen) re-designed the Tempest table in 2009, transforming it into a benchmark flip-top table system. HOWE/KOMPLOT Design partnership has created award-winning furniture solutions.
• David RowlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDavid Rowland designed the iconic 40/4 chair in 1964, which has maintained popularity for decades. Beginning in 2004, Rowland designed additional versions including wood frame variants to complement the original side chair.
• Morten NikolajsencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMorten Nikolajsen is the designer of the MN1 meeting and conference chair family, created with focus on comfort and classic lines for meeting rooms, seminar rooms, and auditoria.
• John BollenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJohn Bollen designed the Simpla table (two-piece lift-off top) and Tutor table (companion to 40/4 chair). Both products won Best of NeoCon awards and embody space-saving functionality.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Steelcase: Global leader in office and contract furniture, including stacking and training/multi-purpose seating and tables. Directly comparable to HOWE in the contract/institutional B2B specification channel, but operates at much greater scale and breadth across categories.
• Allsteel: Contract furniture brand within the HNI portfolio offering seating, tables, and architectural products for corporate and education markets. Overlaps with HOWE in mid-market specification and education vertical.
• Kimball International: US contract furniture company serving workplace, education, and healthcare with seating and tables, including flexible/training furniture lines. Comparable in go-to-market and end-customer mix to HOWE.
• Teknion: Canadian contract furniture manufacturer with seating, tables, and architectural products for office, education, and healthcare. Competes with HOWE in the same B2B specification channel, particularly in North America where HOWE is under-represented.
• Knoll: Designer-driven contract furniture brand (part of MillerKnoll) offering seating, tables, and storage to corporate, education, healthcare, and government clients via the same architect/specifier channel that HOWE serves.
• MillerKnoll (Herman Miller): Holding company for Herman Miller, Knoll, and other contract brands; competes with HOWE in the same architect-and-designer-led specification channel for institutional, education, and corporate customers, with substantially broader product depth.
• Haworth: Privately held global contract furniture manufacturer serving corporate, education, and government customers with seating, tables, and architectural interiors. Overlaps with HOWE in multi-purpose and training/mobile furniture for the same B2B spec channel.

Direct peers

• KI (Krueger International): US-based contract furniture manufacturer specializing in education, healthcare, and government markets with a strong portfolio of stacking/folding chairs and mobile tables. Highly comparable to HOWE in space-saving, multi-use institutional furniture.
• Vitra: Swiss designer-driven contract and residential furniture manufacturer closely comparable to HOWE: similar Scandinavian/European design DNA, strong B2B and institutional presence, and reliance on iconic designer partnerships for flagship chair and table lines.
• Fritz Hansen: Danish premium designer furniture manufacturer with strong institutional and corporate presence. Highly comparable to HOWE in heritage (founded 1872), design-led product strategy, and Danish/Nordic design DNA targeting the same architect-driven specification channel.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xinstagram.com/howe.usa
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCtMhyKXKI6SPY6TrrESkpcg
• Facebookfacebook.com/HOWEmovingdesign
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/howe-a-s

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

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 HOWE