Nurus

Turkish Office Furniture Giant Pushes Ahead of the Curb Opening a brand-new 45 thousand-sqm production facility in Ankara, office furniture manufacturer Nurus is leaping forward to meet expanding global demands while remaining quintessentially Turkish – sticking to its original mission. Based between the country’s capital and Istanbul, the third generation family-run company employs a holistic approach that engages new spatial- furniture- and virtual-based concepts years before its global competitors – all in the guise of innovation. “Perfection in environmental design is not just the reflection of work but of style,” Nurus Managing Director and Partner Güran Gökyay explains. Family Business Expands through the Generations Founded in the 1920’s, Nurettin Kunurkaya – combining the Turkish word for craft with the first generation’s family name – began as a small carpentry studio in Ankara, that later expanded with five storefronts. It wasn’t till the second generation that Nurus – the combination of nurettin (craft) and usta (master) – brought mass production into play, implementing modern and functionalist design. Hit by Turkey’s economic turmoil in the 1980’s, Nurus rebranded itself – targeting an international market – coming out strong in the 1990’s with brothers Güran and Renate Gökyay at its helm. All the while, Nurus worked with major governmental and private banks, marking their entry into office furniture production. Holistic Approach Remains Pragmatic

“Furniture people are not sculptures,” Güran Gökyay defends. “Volatility inspires solutions.” Nurus’ highly practical vision doesn’t omit consideration for its clients. Infact, its mandates to defend them, while ensuring a sense of respect, community, work-ethic, environment, organization, education, sustainability and perhaps most important, quality. Little has changed in this regard, from a deceleration the family business drafted in the 1940’s. Nurus is a brand built on reputation. “Filling in the gaps within the industry is our passion,” Gökyay reveals. “we provide a full service.” When working for big companies, Nurus’ design team tries to understand the full picture, how internal structures interact. Examining their needs, Nurus provides each client with different options. Ironically Gökyay, does the same as he arranges the layout of his new office. The internal design process at Nurus is characterised by interdisciplinary brainstorming and often works with big named external designers such as Arik Levy and Yves Behar. In this process, artisanal practices are balanced with computational flavour – a value Nurus’ competitors have lost in recent year. This philosophy and code of conduct is best exemplified in Picnic – a multi-versatile modular conference table unit that incorporates sofa elements and break out spacez. With no head of the table – Nurus embraces lateral-thinking and free communication. A concept they adopted long before the trend set-in.

Istanbul, at the Centre of the World “When looking at the map of Europe, Istanbul is at the bottom left corner but when looking at a map of the Middle East, Istanbul is on the top right hand side.” Gökyay describes. “Where else in Europe can you build tall towers?” In the past 10-years Istanbul has witnessed a construction boom, welcoming big companies to set up shop and providing Nurus with an extensive list of large office design projects. “Istanbul has been a melting pot since ancient times,” the managing director describes. “Facing west, with roots ingrained towards the east, we have a strong understanding of an oriental mentality.” New Applications Open New Markets The future looks bright for the major Turkish brand – never sitting still, even at the top. Opening their new white-cube-clad Levent showroom, the brand hopes to establish a cultural venue while still showcasing their latest designs – trends that vary by region. Moving into children’s furniture, Nurus is also going deeper into the Middle Eastern market – setting up a showroom in Dubai – but an adventurous cum restless spirit is also taking the brand into Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, Nurus recently launched their digital 3D planner – that allows customers to track the entire lifecycle of their furniture in production and to have acess to a massive database. Güran Gökyay would love to explore the design of public spaces such as airports and universities. Thinking globally, not locally, the values remain the same.