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Meblo furniture factory

Meblo furniture factory, its name meaning “furniture“ in Esperanto, stood as the most important industrial symbol of Nova Gorica and the wider Primorska region. Founded in 1948 in Kromberk, it drew on the long tradition of Solkan carpenters. The factory gained renown for its high-quality furniture, particularly sofa sets, chairs, and tables.

As early as 1964, the company opened its own development institute, where chief industrial designer Ljerka Finžgar (1937–2021) created the A-programme — Yugoslavia‘s first systematic modular furniture line. In 1971, the Gondola chair, designed by the young Oskar Kogoj (b. 1942), was featured on the cover of Industrial Design magazine, the leading international publication in the field at the time.

In addition to furniture, Meblo initiated a fruitful collaboration with the renowned Italian company Harvey Guzzini in the mid-1970s, resulting in an exceptional range of lamps and lighting fixtures. Following Slovenia‘s independence and market restructuring, the company faced financial difficulties that led to its decline. The most famous brand of Meblo is Jogi, a name that, throughout the former Yugoslavia, came to be used as the common word for a mattress. Remarkably, the company continues to operate to this day.

The company still operates today. A+A (today Meblo Signalizacija), once the factory‘s third largest division, remains based in Nova Gorica and specialises in traffic signs and signalling for tourist and sports infrastructure.

At first the factory was called Furniture Factory Nova Gorica; in 1950 it was renamed Edvard Kardelj Furniture Factory Nova Gorica, followed by another renaming in 1953 to Furniture Factory Nova Gorica, and finally in 1963 to Meblo, Furniture Factory Nova Gorica.

Avtor: Blaž Kosovel

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