Wewood opens shop in Lisbon

On 3 October, from 6pm to 9pm, Wewood – Portuguese Joinery will open a new shop in Lisbon, near Avenida da Liberdade.

This step is part of the brand’s strategy to increase its physical presence in Portugal, following the growing demand for quality furniture with an exclusive design, especially from international clients who have been settling in Portugal and recognise the quality of Portuguese manufacture, durability and aesthetics.

The shop, with around 200 square metres of display area spread over two floors, houses the brand’s entire collection as well as pieces from other national and international brands in lighting, carpets, home textiles and ceramics that expand Wewood’s offer.

The design of the shop’s interior was the responsibility of the brand’s creative director, Portuguese architect Joana Marcelino, who defines the project as follows: ‘The project was based on understanding the architecture of the building – Pombaline, the location (Lisbon city centre), our values and the message we wanted to convey. It’s a space where the general architecture takes on the language of the building, which is completely covered by serpentine walls that contain spaces to receive our furniture on a human scale. It’s a confrontation between the past and the present in harmony with our material: solid wood. This serpentine is changeable, meaning it can change colour or texture depending on the season or the collection to be presented, which makes the project extremely dynamic.’

The shop aims to serve not only private clients, but above all architects and interior designers, for both the residential and commercial markets, with a meeting space with all the catalogues and materials so that professionals can also bring their end clients.

Salvador Gonzaga, CEO of Wewood, says that ‘it’s a big investment and more than a year and a half of preparation, planning and building work so that everything is perfect on opening day. Despite being a family-owned Portuguese brand, we don’t want to be left behind by the big international brands that are setting up in Lisbon, with much bigger investments than ours. We want our products to have the same visibility as those brands, because the quality is the same or, in many cases, even superior.’

The location of the new shop, close to Avenida da Liberdade, was a determining factor for Wewood. Lisbon was an obvious choice, because it’s where big business is done and where all the major international furniture companies, the brand’s direct competitors, are located, and where the brand is used to exhibiting at the sector’s major international events.
Located in a commercially, culturally and historically important part of the city, the idea is to be close to one of the city’s main thoroughfares, in a privileged location to showcase the creations of some of the most renowned international designers who collaborate with the brand, such as Belgium’s Alain Gilles and Germany’s Christian Haas, combined with more than 60 years of experience in furniture manufacturing.
With 12 years of existence and regular sales to more than 50 countries, this is the second shop in Portugal, two years after the first opened in Porto.