Fredericia

Why it is renowned

Fredericia is known above all for the furniture of Børge Mogensen, its sole designer from 1955 until his death in 1972, and it still makes his Spanish Chair of 1958 and his J39 of 1947.¹²³⁴ The company says his pieces are collected by museums, architects and designers around the world.⁵ In 2024 the design magazine Dezeen covered Crafting the Present, Fredericia's exhibition in Copenhagen on how the Spanish Chair and Wegner's Ox Chair have been reworked for today's production and environmental standards.⁶

It was one of the Danish houses that showed at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan in 2011, alongside Fritz Hansen and Carl Hansen & Søn.⁷ After Mogensen it added Hans J. Wegner and Nanna Ditzel to its designers, and today it also works with Barber Osgerby, Jasper Morrison, Keiji Takeuchi, Maria Bruun and Cecilie Manz.⁵

The story

N. P. Ravnsø founded Fredericia Stolefabrik, the Fredericia Chair Factory, in 1911. It first specialised in upholstery, and a licence to make Thonet furniture in 1930 brought wood into its work.⁸ In 1955 Andreas Graversen bought the company on the condition that Børge Mogensen be its sole designer; Graversen ran it until 1995.¹²

The Graversen family still owns Fredericia, and Rasmus Graversen, the third generation, is its chief executive.⁵⁹ In October 2020 it bought Erik Jørgensen, and it makes its furniture in its own workshops in Fredericia and Svendborg.¹⁰⁹

What to know it by

• The Spanish Chair³1958Børge MogensenLounge chair in solid oak and saddle leather
• J39 Mogensen Chair⁴1947Børge MogensenDining chair, first made for FDB
• 2213 Sofa¹1962Børge MogensenUpholstered sofa
• Ox Chair¹1960Hans J. WegnerUpholstered lounge chair