Home Collection Perida Contact

History Tailor-made Contemporary Diners Switsit Contract Upholstery

Perida history. From straw mattress to customized chairs

1903 Peter George Ridder established the mattress factory 'De Ooievaar'. (Stork) At that time, straw, sea grass, kapok and cotton wool were used to stuff the mattresses. Covers stitched like pillow slips were fashioned into proper mattresses with the aid of a long needle, string, fluff and a lot of effort. The first week saw a turnover of 2 mattresses, and a loss of 3 guilders.

               

  

  1925

Mattress factory "de Ooievaar" moved to an imposing building in the Oudezijds Achterburgwal in Amsterdam, via other premises in the Ridderstraat and the Oude Schans, having expanded well beyond the original premises. Production at that time rose to 30 mattresses a week, with 5 employees. The handcart was replaced by a delivery bicycle. So-called bruggentrekkers or bruggenduwers ('bridge pullers' or 'pushers') lent a hand when crossing bridges across the Amsterdam canals.

 

 

1931 Piet Ridder succeeded his father as head of the mattress factory at the age of 16, following the latter's untimely death. The thirties arrived, and with it the depression. War threatened throughout Europe and the young Piet Ridder became the main breadwinner. The push bike was no longer adequate and a delivery van was purchased.

1946 Piet Ridder, who was by now married with 3 children, had to start from scratch again. A number of employees had not survived the war and stock and materials were lost during World War II. The company leased premises which belonged to an old-established municipal bank. The production of mattresses is started anew, with the aid of a bank loan and credit from suppliers. Materials were in short supply and the business was merely ticking over. 'De Ooievaar' embarked on another product, in addition to mattresses, i.e. loose cushions for armchairs. Many people may remember the fireside armchairs with backs which could be adjusted by means of a wooden rod. The cushions were also known as Morris chair cushions.  

 

1953  OOievaar became Perida.  Piet Ridder thought a new name would be appropriate: PEter RIDder Amsterdam. P E R I D A. He booked all the rooms in the renowned Brinkmann hotel in Haarlem, where Perida celebrated its 50th anniversary. Perida also introduced a new Morris chair cushion under the name of 'Paramount' (Piet Ridder's favorite brand of cigarette). Meanwhile a large part of the Dutch public found their way to Perida. Nearly all Morris chairs came with 'Paramount' cushions. Perida produced around 30,000 of such Chairs annually. A smith known to Piet Ridder was asked to automate the stuffing machines.

 

         

1903

50

1953

  1967 By now, the 3rd generation of the Ridder family, Ed, Boud and Paul, had joined the company. Polyester, invented during World War II, was replaced by polyether foam. The modeling possibilities were very nearly unlimited. The young owners considered the future of the business to lie in the manufacture of three-piece suites. They studied the market and followed demand. In addition to the Rio, designed in 1958, demand for the well-known sixties models grew rapidly. Perida organized a fair in Treslong Hillegom, well-known amongst Dutch TV viewers (Trapeze), where it exhibited more than 40 new designs.

 

       

1970-1980. Perida continued to specialize in the manufacture of three-piece suites. The world of furniture suppliers had shrunk. There were regular visits to fairs in Cologne, Milan and Copenhagen. The company specialized in leather furniture, sourcing its leather from all over the world. Water buffalo leather from Taiwan and wild buffalo leather from New Zealand. "MondiLeather", one of the leading retailers in Holland, exhibited in 1975 at the Huishoudbeurs (RAI AMSTERDAM home exhibition) with 60 leather seating units in the top range of the market, each and every one produced by Perida. Then came the recession at the end of the seventies. The interest rate rose to 13% and sales of expensive furniture fell for the first time. Piet Ridder decided to retire after fifty years and hand the running of the business over to the younger generation.

 

1982 - 2000 Top quality leather seating sales came under pressure and Perida looked for new business opportunities. The general market had been neglected, due to extensive specialization in customization and comfort. It was nigh impossible to rebuild a client base at a time when various 'major brands' were experiencing difficulties. Perida decided to continue specializing in customization. This required approaching the customer direct, so that end users could decide for themselves what they wanted in the way of seating comfort.

      

Not merely through a choice of upholstery, or higher legs either: Perida started to supply fully tailor-made furniture, involving a complete change in the production from a production line to production to order. The experience gained in customized production proved of benefit, as other customers knocked on the company's door. The boom in de luxury yachts building in the Netherlands created a huge demand for tailor-made products.

1903 - 2003