Filipino buyers immediately gravitate towards the dining sets when buying teak furniture. (Photo by PRANZ KAENO BILLONES)

Filipinos may love Narra wood but lately, a growing fondness for anything and everything made of teak wood is surely becoming evident in most of Metro Manila’s homes.  A “rediscovery” of this most Southeast Asian of woods is happening at the moment.  Indeed, after a short lull in demand during the 70s and 80s (enough it seems to protect old teak stands and plant teak plantations for future demand), a slow but sure renaissance is now apparent in the demand for teak furnishings, accents and yes, even flooring.

Gone are the days when buyers associate teak with ship-building and massive (though durable) lawn furniture only.  Today, new designs are in the offing for consumers to choose from.  It also helps that an abundant supply of teak wood has also been made available—thus, assuring them of a steady stream of new products in the market.

The mystique of this wood has surely grown stronger lately—a fact not lost to one of the Philippines’ foremost suppliers of teak furniture—Komodo Artcrafts Inc.  However, to hear owners Louie and Kay Mendez, recount how they started their business, one has the impression that they just stumbled into their enterprise quite unexpectedly, the way destiny seems to work. Louie was then a top executive at San Miguel Corporation, which had opened a factory in one of the provinces of Indonesia. He was among the officers assigned to run the plant.

“Since I knew I was going to be assigned in Indonesia,” recounts Louie, “we were thinking why not buy all our stuff in Indonesia?  With this in mind, our weekends were devoted to sightseeing and hunting for furniture.  While hunting for furniture we thought again, why not get into this after my work stint in Indonesia?”

It was while during such “furniture hunting” that they became acquainted with the teak furnishings of Indonesia.  Then as now, Indonesia remains one of the biggest exporters of teak wood and their designs—which hew more on Asian inspiration—were just then becoming well-known to the rest of the world, the Philippines included.

But fate had other things in mind.  While just getting their bearings living in a foreign country, the Asian Financial Crisis hit and they were shipped back to Manila almost immediately.  The sudden change in their situation did not stop them though from pursuing their plans.  Forthwith, they decided to retire from their respective jobs, and went back to Indonesia to start their business.  “We bet our entire retirement pay on it,” remembers Louie on their decision to start a new chapter in their lives.

Not surprisingly, they decided to specialize on teak furnishings and accents right from the start. 

“Teak just happens to be one of the best woods in the world.  It is water resistant—does not rot, and is termite resistant,” says Louie, adding that Filipinos immediately came to love teak as “Filipinos basically like wood since we were exposed to it while growing up.  A Filipino family would always want to own a solid wood dining table or a bookshelf.  Considering our environment, who does not want a water and termite resistant wooden furniture?”

Initially, Filipino buyers were drawn to their teak dining sets, entertainment tables, beds, bookshelves, console tables and outdoor/garden furniture—the usual stuff most homeowners start with.  Lately, however, they’ve noticed that more modern teak pieces like sectional sets are the ones selling well. 

The furniture that Pinoys do not seem to like the most are the side tables, he says, which is a pity considering that these pieces are actually the ones most difficult to make from a craftsman’s point of view.

At present, their business is branching out into other home items like flooring (both teak and exotic hardwoods) and Indonesian stones.  They’ve also gone into production as well—a necessity it seems as they found out that they couldn’t get the same pieces once it is bought from their showroom (“We were buying from wholesalers.”). Today, Komodo is also known for custom-order furniture.

Ironic as it may seem, Louie and Kay’s home contain very little teak furniture as they are focused as yet on managing their business.  Nonetheless, they envision teak pieces in every Filipino home not only for their aesthetic appeal but for their practical properties as well. 

“There’s now an increased awareness on teak furniture,” he says, “especially after the big flood.  For some of our customers, their teak furnishings are the only ones that survived the calamity.”

They opened a new store at LRI Design Plaza along Reposo St. (Nicanor Garcia) in Makati City.  The bulk of their products are still at the Pioneer St. store in Mandaluyong.  However, they plan on opening one to two more stores next year—enough for now to assuage the Pinoy’s desire for teak furnishings.