If you’re searching for outdoor furniture that’s stylish and socially responsible, we have the company for you.
Loll Designs, located in Duluth, Minnesota, has been enhancing outdoor experiences with some of the most fun and fashionable styles we’ve seen in a long time. Think a birdhouse that resembles a local church or a streamlined plastic lounger that comes with its own bottle opener.
We reached out to Loll to learn about the company’s skate park beginnings and find out how their team is carving out a top-flight path to success.
1. How did you get into furniture design? Is it true Loll started out building skate ramps?
True Ride was the name of the skate park company we started in 1997. We built more than 400 custom made skate parks across the U.S. and abroad using two main materials: Richlite (compressed paper) and recycled HDPE plastic (think milk jugs).
With a growing question about what to do with all the leftover material from the skate parks, we decided to try to make cool things out of it – repurposing it into high-quality, useful items rather than putting it all in a landfill.
Since we knew the materials were durable in any weather, outdoor furniture seemed like a logical direction. In 2003 we started experimenting with building an Adirondack style chair. After three years of prototyping our Adirondack collection, we began selling it online.
2. Any plans for a dedicated indoor line?
Many of our customers will admit they buy our furniture to use indoors as well, as they like the bold colors and the modern look. We work hard to make our designs functional and beautiful so there really is no reason it can’t be used indoors.
3. How difficult is the furniture business? How to do you differentiate yourself?
It’s not uncommon to find outdoor furniture made from recycled HDPE. Therefore, we differentiate our products by using a higher standard of material, focusing on impeccable design, and offering a product that can be easily fixed by replacing parts rather than needing to replace an entire item.
We differentiate ourselves as a company by striving to become the most sustainable manufacturing facility we can be. We have continuous improvement committees who work to reduce manufacturing and office waste, increase productivity and efficiencies, and improve employee wellness and well-being.
Our sustainability commitment continues with giving 1% of our profits to local and regional environmental and outdoor recreation organizations as part of [the] 1% for the Planet Program.
Many of our customers express that they not only love our furniture, they love what we stand for and how we do business. Having a highly respectable company behind a top-notch product is what differentiates us.
4. Why set up shop in the Midwest? Where’s your factory located?
We set up shop in Duluth, Minnesota, back in our skate park days and have never considered going anywhere else.
For anyone who is in love with the outdoors, Duluth is the place to be (assuming you can handle some serious winters). There’s really no limit to the outdoor recreation opportunities in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin and we love them all.
Pace of life is much more relaxed than being in a large city, yet this area offers a great variety of arts, music, food (and beer!) that rivals many urban environments.
Living in the Twin Ports of Minnesota and Wisconsin is really a way of life in and of itself, and it’s where we want to be.
5. Just wondering: Is the fire pit a fad or is it here to stay?
As long as there is fire, there will be fire pits!
6. What is something that most people don’t know about Loll?
Most people don’t get our name. They think it has something to do with laughing out loud.
The name Loll is a derivative of the word Lollygag or Lollygagger. It means to sit, lie, or stand in a lazy, relaxed way. It perfectly explains how we want people to enjoy our furniture in the great outdoors.
Our signature collection is called the Lollygagger, our staff refers to themselves as professional Lollygaggers and we even have a locally crafted beer brewed in our honor with the same name. We take great pride in our name – as odd as it may be.
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To learn more about Loll, visit http://lolldesigns.com/
5912 Waseca St, Duluth, MN 55807, USA