Perhaps you’ve never thought of checking out Zara when shopping for home goods, but a new collaboration with a distinguished designer is about to change all that. The Spain-based fast fashion retailer teamed up with Belgian architect and designer to develop a sophisticated new ongoing collection reimagining his most iconic styles. The first series, unveiled on June 30th, focuses on elevated yet easy-going living room furniture incorporating Van Duysen’s signature soft and soothing minimalist aesthetic.
The new includes 19 products, including sofas, armchairs, desks, tables, consoles, lighting, ceramics, and textiles. It’s the first designer collaboration under the retailer’s new premium ZARAHOME+ line. Made of high-quality materials like solid French oak, leather, cotton, linen. and sanded stone from Galicia, Spain, the collection will be priced higher than usual for Zara, with sofas starting at $6,300 and rugs starting at $500.
“I am democratic, heart and soul,” Van Duysen says. “And I love the philosophy, the attitude, and the positioning of Zara in the world to make beautiful things accessible for any of us. I wanted to see what that would look like for my furniture.”
Marta Ortega, chair of Zara’s parent company Inditex, has long been a fan of Van Duysen’s work. When Ortega visited the architect’s Antwerp home in person, she immediately began to envision what a collaboration between Van Duysen and Zara could look like. He enthusiastically accepted her proposal and began looking back on his extensive portfolio to get an idea of how he could adapt his signature style for the company’s customers.
“I’ve spent 35 years building up my name, my career, my aesthetics, and my DNA, and I’m here to inspire, so that anybody in the world can buy beautifully crafted furniture at a decent price from me,” Van Duysen says. “I want my pieces to be in everyone’s home, no matter who they are and no matter at what scale.”
Van Duysen’s own homes, past and present, offered a lot of inspiration for this project — especially the very first one he designed in Belgium after returning from school in Milan. He wanted to recapture the classic simplicity of that space, producing pieces that were stripped down to their “purest forms” to eliminate frills and excess.
That doesn’t mean the pieces lack visual interest, of course. Standouts include elegant stools in natural wood and leather, a dreamy boucle-clad sofa destined to give the a run for its money, and hefty and solid-feeling oak and limestone tables with cross-shaped bases. The pieces are designed to fit into virtually any home, from a tiny urban apartment to a stately country manor, in terms of both style and scale.
The collection represents the first time Van Duysen’s work has been globally available. Though Zara doesn’t have any brick-and-mortar retail stores in the United States, the ZARAHOME+ Vincent Van Duysen living room collection is now available on Zara’s website, with a new dining collection set to launch in October. You can also find pieces in select Zara flagship locations throughout Europe.
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