Lichen NYC

Name

Lichen NYC

Legal name

lichennyc

Website

https://lichennyc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Designer Furniture & Home Goods

NAICS

Interior Design Services (54141), Office Furniture (including Fixtures) Manufacturing (3372)

SIC

Household Furniture (2510), Retail-Furniture Stores (5712)

akta.pro primary industry

Interior Design Services (BPAHAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Space Planning & Workplace Design (BPAHAKAI)

Keywords

• Designer furniture
• Modern home goods
• Interior design services
• Prop rental services
• Custom wood fabrication

Headquarters

HQ city

Ridgewood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Product Sales: Direct retail sales of furniture, lighting, accessories, and vintage design objects through e-commerce and physical showrooms. Products range from in-house designed items (ZE Sofa collection, wall shelves, sconces) to curated third-party brands.
2. Prop Rental: Rental of furniture and fixtures for events, photo shoots, and temporary installations. Includes designer furniture from brands like Cappellini, Magis, and Artifort.
3. Interior Design & Consulting: Custom interior design projects, spatial design consulting, and fixture fabrication for commercial and residential clients including restaurants, retail spaces, and art installations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Lichen NYC is a Brooklyn-based design studio that designs, manufactures, and retails its own line of modern furniture, lighting, and home goods, while also curating third-party and vintage design objects. The company operates a woodshop for custom fabrication and supports clients with interior design consulting, prop rental for events and productions, and custom fixture work for commercial spaces.

Product overview

Lichen NYC is a design incubator and furniture studio co-founded by Ed Be and Jared Blake in 2017, offering a curated mix of in-house designed furniture and resale products. Their product portfolio centers on the ZE Sofa Collection (a collaboration with Karimoku Furniture from Japan), alongside various seating, tables, storage, and lighting categories. The company also designs and manufactures original pieces including tables by Aidan Elias (Shmuel, KAVE), wall fixtures by Alvaro Ucha Rodriguez (Sconces, Hangi.Tutti organizers), and organizational products. Additional offerings include personal care products (MALIN+GOETZ, MARGIN), home fragrances (FRAGILE GLASS candles and incense), and accessories. Beyond retail, they provide interior design consulting and furniture rental services through their showrooms in Ridgewood, NY and Brooklyn, NY.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FF&E Exclusives: A collection of exclusive furniture and design pieces available through Lichen NYC.
• ZE Sofa Collection

Products and services

• In-house designed furniture and home goods Modern furniture, lighting, and home objects designed and fabricated in-house by Lichen NYC, sold to retail consumers and used in commercial projects.
• Curated third-party and vintage design objects A curated assortment of vintage and third-party design objects sold through Lichen NYC's showrooms and Shopify store, complementing its own-designed line.
• Interior design consulting Interior design consulting services for commercial clients, leveraging Lichen NYC's in-house design and fabrication capabilities.
• Prop rental for events and productions Rental of furniture and design objects for use as props in events, film/TV productions, and commercial shoots.
• Custom fixture fabrication Custom fabrication of furniture and fixtures for commercial clients, produced at the company's Brooklyn woodshop.

Quantifiable outcome

• Featured in 15+ major publications including Vogue, NY Times T Magazine, Architectural Digest, and Wallpaper

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Studio NewworkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Collaborated with Studio Newwork on creating custom plywood fixtures and seating for Everest Isles retail store opening in Wallingford, CT. Lichen provided design and fabrication services while Studio Newwork contributed to the overall project vision.
• KarimokucoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Exclusive collaboration to reissue the ZE Sofa (designed 1982) for the modern apartment. Lichen NYC serves as the exclusive US partner for the Karimoku ReIssue line. The partnership includes co-designed products and event collaborations such as the launch event in New York.
• Fragile GlassminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFragile Glass candles, incense, and home fragrances are sold through the Lichen NYC store. Fragile Glass is a curated brand whose products complement Lichen's design-focused inventory.
• USMminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUSM Haller modular shelving systems are sold through Lichen NYC. The partnership provides access to premium organizational furniture for Lichen's customer base.
• Standards ManualminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-hosted 'Archive' - a conference about the preservation of design held at FIT Manhattan. Standards Manual is an independent publishing imprint focused on graphic design history.
• Kompakt RecordsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCollaborated on 'Lichen NYC x Kompakt Records Weekend' event at CHATROOM venue in Brooklyn. Kompakt Record Bar features music, atmosphere, and beverage selection.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Dims: New York-based design retailer curating contemporary and vintage furniture from independent designers and heritage brands. Direct competitor with similar positioning, geography, and curated marketplace model.
• 1stDibs: Online marketplace for luxury vintage and contemporary furniture and design objects. Comparable as a curated platform connecting design-conscious buyers with high-end furniture, though operating at a much larger marketplace scale.
• Lawson-Fenning: Los Angeles-based design studio and retailer producing in-house furniture alongside curated vintage pieces. Closely comparable hybrid maker-retailer model, with in-house designs and a focus on mid-century and contemporary aesthetics.
• Hem: Design-forward DTC furniture brand offering curated contemporary pieces from independent designers. Closely mirrors Lichen's incubator-style model of partnering with independent designers and selling direct to design-conscious consumers.
• Floyd: Detroit-based DTC contemporary furniture brand selling sofas, beds, shelving, and tables direct-to-consumer. Comparable to Lichen as a design-forward, e-commerce-led retailer targeting the same design-conscious urban consumer, though operating at significantly larger scale.
• Audo Copenhagen (formerly Menu): Danish design brand producing and selling contemporary furniture, lighting, and accessories through own-brand retail. Comparable as a design-led furniture maker whose products overlap with Lichen's in-house seating, lighting, and accessories categories.

Emerging players

• Article: Online direct-to-consumer modern furniture brand targeting design-conscious millennials with contemporary sofas, tables, and chairs. Comparable DTC positioning though more mass-market and faster-shipping than Lichen's boutique model.

Broad incumbents

• West Elm: Williams-Sonoma-owned design furniture retailer offering contemporary furniture, lighting, and home accessories across broad price points. Competes for the same design-conscious consumer but at significantly larger scale and with a much wider catalog.
• CB2: Crate & Barrel's younger, design-forward sibling banner. Targets the same modern design consumer with contemporary furniture, and Lichen even resells CB2 pieces (e.g., the Laszlo Sofa) in its own store.
• Design Within Reach (Herman Miller): Established design retailer specializing in iconic modern furniture from heritage designers. Operates as a broad incumbent in the same premium design furniture category that Lichen curates from brands like Cassina and B&B Italia.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCpiv54pouZ9IiJgmCANAp_A
• Instagraminstagram.com/lichennyc
• TikToktiktok.com/@lichennyc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lichen-nyc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Lichen NYC