Our Story ..
When Barney Willis and Nigel Gambier started Willis & Gambier as a bed designer and importer in 1990 they could never have anticipated the growth of the pine furniture market. Within 8 years they had successfully taken control of 14% of the UK bunk bed market.
In 1998, the brand shifted direction and was repositioned into the premium furniture market selling wooden bedroom and dining room furniture. During December 2006 and the start of 2007, the company went through a management buyout and Barney Willis took retirement.
The Willis & Gambier range of furniture is perfectly suited to 21st century living. Our highly experienced teams of designers and technicians use their expertise, imagination and passion to create traditional and contemporary designs which provide both style and practicality in any setting.
Our core values are to produce beautifully designed furniture using appropriate woods and a mixture of solid and veneered finishes and to offer the customer long lasting furniture at inexpensive prices. We manufacture our furniture using wood that is felled strictly under license or that is plantation grown, mainly in North and South America and the Far East.
With over 135 collections created over the last three years, we are a global company with a well established reputation for excellent quality and service and we are probably the biggest supplier of premium furniture in the UK
We hope our website gives you a sense of the style and passion that is Willis & Gambier.
Our Customers
We have a wide range of customers nationwide from small, independent retailers to well-known high street names.
We are members of the AIS group and some of the major groups we work with are: House of Fraser; John Lewis; Laura Ashley and Marks & Spencer and within these partnerships, we are able to develop exclusive ranges as well as maintain demand for our main collections.
We also supply directly to retailers in a number of overseas markets.
Our Commitment
We maintain our own UK warehousing and distribution operation with over 545,000 square feet of storage space, handling in excess of 50 containers a week. Our fleet of over 10 branded vehicles include our newly launched artic, covering the whole of the UK. We offer a 4 week delivery time on all items, both in the UK and Europe (subject to stock availability).
The Beauty of Wood..
We source high quality wood from around the world to provide a comprehensive range of finishes to suit any type and style of room, including Oak, Cherry, Black and White Walnut, Alder, Elm, Hevea and Birch to name but a few. Each design makes the most of the wood’s colour and form, creating the perfect synthesis of style and texture. The result is a piece of furniture which delights both in look and feel.
We also offer and wide range of finishes, including waxed, oiled, wire wool distressed, hand lacquered and hand painted options.
Our Commitment to the Environment
Willis & Gambier recognises that there is a need to be pro-active in assuring that its own timber supplies meet and exceed minimum levels of forest management. We have therefore developed a timber procurement policy, which strives to ensure that all timber used in Willis & Gambier products is fully traceable, fully compliant with legal requirements and finally progressing towards sustainability.
To implement this policy we will cooperate through partnerships with suppliers to make continual improvement in environmental and social performance. Willis & Gambier has commissioned ProForest, an Oxford-based company, to provide support on policy implementation and work with suppliers to improve their timber sourcing.
We are committed to the phasing out from our supply chain, timber of unwanted sources and timber that does not meet acceptable legal, human rights and environmental standards.
This commitment is being progressively implemented through a timber supplier programme using a phased approach. The phased approach is based upon the establishment of a number of stages or steps of performance measurement. These stages provide the basis for measuring our overall performance. Our four stage programme consists of the following:
1) Timber from known sources
2) Timber from legal sources
3) Timber from sources progressing to certification
4) Timber from independently certified sources
The objectives of the phased approach are to improve the quality of information about our timber supply base, and by working in partnership with suppliers to gradually improve their supply chain, and ultimately the source forest management performance.
Our long-term intention is to source all timber that we use from forests which have been certified through credible certification schemes
Creative Designs That Work
The Willis & Gambier furniture design team is second to none.
Combining many years experience within different disciplines with a real passion for their work, they have created no less than 1350 pieces since 2005. From initial research and mood board stage through to 3D sketch models, our designers manage each project through every step of the process and are also responsible for selecting the finish and fittings for each range. Designing these collections has given a strong insight and understanding for exactly what customers are looking for in furniture design. Classic, contemporary or casual, our objective is simple: to offer eye-catching pieces which will offer style, practicality and longevity in any home, from a modern city apartment to a traditional country residence.
Protecting Our Work
Intellectual property is very important at Willis & Gambier.
We ensure that during the development process, our designs are registered with ACID (Anti Copying In Design). We also register our designs as ‘Registered Community Designs’ with OHIM (Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market) which protects our work within the whole of the European community.
In addition, we protect our designs from infringement through informal policing by our agents and staff. All apparent copies are followed up through proper legal channels and if necessary, the courts.
Setting the Standard
As an independent manufacturer, we are committed to the highest of standards of quality and service.
 We currently have manufacturing facilities in China, Brazil and Malaysia, using the latest techniques and specialist equipment to produce the finest finishes. Dependant on the factory we can employ up to 3000 workers at any one time. W&G audits all of its suppliers to ensure they meet the requirements of the ETI Base Code and abide by their own country laws and health and safety guidelines. All audits are carried out by independent firm, Intertec. We do not tolerate harsh treatment or discrimination of any kind and operate a strict no child labour policy.
We have a 20 strong Quality Control team dedicated to ensuring that standards are maintained throughout the production cycle, from careful sourcing of materials to meticulous attention to detail in the manufacturing process.
Each piece of furniture is analysed at every step of the development process to ensure there are no problems for when the product goes into production.
We will also test the finish to comply with European Standard EN71-3: 1994 Migration of Certain Elements to ensure there is no lead or toxic substance in the finish which could be transferred. Dining collections are subjected to further testing for suitability. They will comply with the British Standard BS 6250 Part 3: 1991 Horizontal Surfaces to evaluate whether the surface of a dining table will stand up to coffee, dry heat, lemon juice, bleach and other harmful substances.
Once product arrives in the UK, it is then subjected to strict due diligence inspections which targets returning items by percentage. This enables us to analyse the product in detail and hopefully identify any issues/trends and resolve any problems going forward.
At W&G we also keep a supply of spares and replacements ensuring lead times for delivery are kept to a minimum and all replacement items are inspected to ensure the product is of good quality.
At every stage, product is stamped by the inspector and batch codes are printed on packaging to ensure that we can efficiently trace any problem back to source.
By choosing Willis & Gambier you are buying into a long established and well proven tradition of excellence.
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