COMPANY
Everything has started in 1986, then came 2009, and Riluc was born. A new era, a new vision. Writing furniture-making history. Where will the journey take us?
Everything has started in Portugal, outside Porto, in 1986, then came 2009, and Riluc was born - a new and surprising brand.
The starting point is a family-owned business with 25 years of know-how in the art of transforming metal, with extreme quality of fabrication and traditional craftsmanship techniques. In 2008 started the process of reinvention.
Toni Grilo was the responsible designer to give shape to the idea of creating an outstanding brand of furniture, “something that didn’t exist in the global market, capable of arousing curiosity and calling attention to the quality of work we have been producing for decades” dreamt Ricardo Lucas, the founder of the brand.
The first exhibition of the brand was made in 2009 at Intercasa in Lisbon with the sensational and sculptural Bibendum armchair. This objet d’art went around the world and Riluc became an iconic brand, known for its handcrafted wonders, the proof of genuine craftsmanship and its cutting edge design.
Then came the invitation to exhibit at the prestigious Maison & Objet, in Paris and the American “Details Magazine” listed Riluc on “The World’s Top Emerging Furniture Makers”, considering the brand one of the ten most promising companies in the furniture sector.
Writing furniture-making history… Where will the journey take us?
CRAFTSMANSHIP
When you first think about the raw material, stainless steel, you think it of being mainly machine-made, but the role of the craftsman becomes clear in this hand-crafted wonders of Riluc.
The perfect balance has been found between masterly traditional craftsmanship, cutting edge design and technological research.
Materials
Cork
Cork is the bark of the Cork Oak tree. This tree art is very present in our national territory. The extraction of the bark does not destroy the oak tree, because its exterior regenerates itself. It is an ecological super-material with unique properties: Lightness, flexibility, compressibility, impermeability. In addition, this natural raw material provides also a positive impact to the environment because it’s completely biodegradable, recyclable and renewable. A natural process obtains the dark colour of the cork, chosen for our products.
Stainless Steel
Stainless Steel is not a single alloy, but a group of iron-based alloys, that contents at least 10.5% Chromium which makes it highly resistant to corrosion, forming an self-protective clear oxide film on its surface. Its mechanical properties: strength, high-temperature strength, ductility and toughness.
Titanium Coating
Titanium Nitride is an extremely hard, inert, thin film applied through a process of Physical Vapour Deposition. This environmentally friendly vacuum coating method that has the ability to apply with a very high adherence through vacuum deposition (heating or sputtering) a very thin film, providing an inert surface barrier.
This process allows increasing the protection of the products from corrosion improves the wear resistance and is responsible for the gold, copper, brass, and chocolate appearance of our products.
Sustainability
The selection of stainless steel as primary material is considered by our organization as a serious commitment to the environment.
Durability and recyclability are two of the key contributions which stainless steel makes to sustainability. By taking this environmentally sustainable approach, Riluc is promoting the conservation of natural resources, pollution prevention and minimization of waste generation.