Creative Mind: Jeff Forrest
The founder of the innovation-driven Toronto design studio Stacklab debuts a new digital platform that allows users to create customized furniture from remnants and overstock materials
“My company is built on the idea that the last thing the world needs is another chair,” says Jeff Forrest, founder of the innovation-driven Toronto design studio Stacklab. Not that he’s against making chairs. He just wants to do it more efficiently and sustainably.
It’s the core principle behind Stackabl, his new digital platform that allows users to create customized furniture from remnants and overstock materials sourced in real time from regional manufacturers. To launch Stackabl, Forrest teamed up with Maison Gerard, whose owner, Benoist F. Drut, was compelled by the idea of a new model for collectible design—“turning waste into wonders,” as the Stackabl tagline goes.
In its initial phase, the Stackabl configurator offers four chairs, a bench, and a chaise longue, all made with felt offcuts, legs of responsibly harvested wood, and recycled aluminum and plastic components. To showcase Stackabl’s potential, Drut invited top design firms such as Drake/Anderson, Champalimaud Design, and Georgis & Mirgorodsky to create a series of signature Stackabl pieces, unveiling the results at Salon Art + Design in New York in November.
A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2022 Spring Issue under the headline “Creative Minds.” Subscribe to the magazine.