WHAT WE DO?The Story
Trāblos, or Tripoli, the city of three fragrant orange orchards earned recognition for many crafts and industries among which woodcraft dating back to the 1850’s.
Recalling a golden era
For more than a century, wood was a vital part of the city’s existence, a traditional art and main source of livelihood. People of this city breathed wood since birth, as their ancestors did before them. The city’s wood craftsmanship grew in fame and Tripoli became a regional hub for luxury and beautifully crafted furniture.
Following long years of war, this golden era ceased to exist. Tripoli’s woodcraft industry suered deeply from many ailments leading to decline and disregard.
The situation was worsened due to the emergence of low-cost imported furniture dominating the market. Something needed to be done!
How it started
Facing a crumbling industry and a massive drop in furniture manufacturing, the Private Sector Development (PSD) Program, funded by the European Union and implemented by Expertise France with local and international partners, has identified an opportunity for a potential revival of the industry. Within this scope, Minjara was established.
THE END RESULTHow it’s going
Today, Minjara is under the management of the René Moawad Foundation and its partners, including the prestigious Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts (alba), bringing you new product lines infused with a Lebanese identity.
Choosing Minjara is directly supporting a community of proud Lebanese carpenters from Tripoli who strive to keep their craft alive.
Minjara, the furniture brand
The brand features the work of renowned furniture producers in Tripoli built on a solid foundation of heritage and modernity. Every piece of Minjara furniture undergoes strict control at every stage of production ensuring the best quality standards for customers.
Minjara, the platform
An old building within Rashid Karami International Fair in Tripoli, designed by the famous architect Oscar Niemeyer, has been selected to host the platform.
Spread over an area of 1500 square meters, the building was renovated whilst preserving its original architecture. It was furnished by Tripoli’s carpenters and fully equipped by Expertise France with modern machines. The platform was inaugurated on September 27, 2018 under the patronage of Prime Minister Saad Hariri. The platform stands today as a networking and clustering space proposing a 360o package of services to support the furniture sector in Tripoli.
The platform:
• Offers a common place to work and connect with carpenters, designers, consumers and professionals.
• Assists the carpenters in terms of guidance, education, training and sectoral governance.
• Facilitates product development catering to the market trends, starting with the selection of the raw materials through its material library (which gathers samples and technical specifications of key materials and inputs used in the furniture production), to the ideation and prototyping, to pre-production (testing the production of prototypes and optimizing production practices) and finally quality management (to guarantee high-quality products).
• Assists in product commercialization and market access.
MINJARA BRAND VALUES
ACCESSIBLE
Everyone deserves to own quality furniture.
IDENTIFIABLE
Modular furniture with a signature look and feel.
SOCIALLY COMMITTED
Serving both Tripolitan carpenters and consumers.
SUSTAINABLE
We follow sustainability practices, from start to finish.
DURABLE
It is made to last.
HONEST
The value of our products can be immediately recognized.
