About Our Business

Douglas & Co. is a manufacturer of top quality and bespoke wood furniture. We are spoilt for location and inspiration: our workshop is nestled against the mountain on a wine farm in Franschhoek, Western Cape, South Africa.

We are hands on and a crew of four. We like it this way – an intimacy with client, design and materials; a dominant human element in that our manufacturing is all about hand and eye working together as opposed to the mass produced uniformity of computer and laser cutting and guiding; and a small studio with a few minds and hands dedicated to making the best possible product. We interchange jobs all the time but each have areas of expertise: Stuart designing furniture and managing the business, Michael running the workshop, Boyce helping with machining and finishing, and Andrew rendering with oil, wax or paint.

We also all love wood and have a passion for working with the twists and turns and variations presented by a natural and ever-changing raw material. At Douglas & Co. we understand that beauty is a particular combination of the aesthetic and the ethical. To this extent we are constantly striving to produce stylish pieces while using sustainable lumber (Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) certified hard woods, EU-approved ply and veneer and panda-friendly bamboo). Our sealants, oils, waxes and paints are EU-compliant and non-toxic, without lead, hydro-carbon free and biodegradable – from water-based enamels to beeswax and plant turpentine-based oils.

Douglas & Co. does what it takes to create the perfect item of furniture. We ensure careful stock selection for continuity of colour, grain and patina; we make certain that the timber has been sustainably forested and milled as well as fairly traded; we cut, shape and assemble with precision while keeping our carbon footprint to a minimum; and we take the time to do it properly.

Having spent much of his childhood working wood and helping his dad with building wooden yachts, at the end of his schooling Stuart spent some time restoring antique furniture. While studying at the University of Cape Town he dibbled and dabbled in woodwork, the most noteable activity being refurbishing a wooden yacht. While an interest in woodwork has always existed, it was only after completing his PhD at Rice University, Texas, and moving to Franschhoek that Stuart began to approach woodwork professionally. This seriousness and passion has lead from a one-man business managing small cabinetry commissions to a larger, more elaborate and highly efficient furniture design and manufacturing operation.