There are few medium-sized, family-run companies remaining within the office and public-area furniture sector. The Dauphin HumanDesign Group (DHDG) with its headquarters in Offenhausen near Nuremberg is one of the most successful. With a market share of around 13 per cent, the DHDG is the market leader in the office swivel-chair segment in Germany. The group is made up of five independent companies, all with independent brand concepts, and is one of the leading European providers of complete solutions for the office area. Its close-knit network of production sites, HumanDesign Centres, sales representatives and licensees (in 59 countries around the world) is organised on a decentralised basis and is extremely flexible.

By responding astutely to market changes and trends within the sector, the Dauphin family has transformed its classic office-seating factory into a global group of businesses. Over the course of the last 39 years, the company has evolved from an individual enterprise into a holding company with ten subsidiaries and 21 sales and production companies as well as the numerous branches and licensees.

The Dauphin Group is oriented towards achieving economically sustainable growth. However, its activities are not restricted to the office and public-area furniture business. For example, the Dauphin family runs a very successful vineyard and fruit-growing business at the historical “Allée Bleue” farm in South Africa. The wines which the company produces have won numerous awards and are already established names on the international market. The 150ha estate features not only an independent restaurant but also an exclusive event and conference centre equipped with the very latest meeting and seminar-room facilities. An additional boutique hotel is currently under construction.

“Everything from a single source” is the entrepreneurial family motto. It was this holistic principle which prompted Dauphin’s decision to make its private collection of vintage vehicles accessible to the public about four years ago. It did this not by setting up an automobile museum but an event location where seminars, conferences, training sessions or private celebrations of any type and size take place against a backdrop of around 130 vintage cars and 200 rare motorcycles.

The “Dauphin Speed Event” also takes care of the planning, design and organisation of events for up to 500 people. A park with an area of around 9,000 square metres is part of the package of services, which also includes catering, decoration, stage and sound systems, artist recruitment and hotel reservations.

Nevertheless, the Dauphin family’s core business remains the creation of “working environments for people”. The DHDG's declared aim is to come up with integrated solutions which help to improve people’s working environments and create a greater sense of well-being in the office. With its five independent companies, the Dauphin Group’s roots lie very much in the area of office furnishings.

The Bosse Design brand name is synonymous with intelligent, space-saving structural systems and the modular, design-oriented “modul space” furniture system. Through Bosse, DHDG offers reception counters, sideboards, shelving units, tables, storage units, seating and a great deal more from its range of system modules. Bosse Design is a declaration of the Group’s belief in the system approach.

The Dauphin brand is regarded as a trendsetter in the areas of occupational medicine and seating ergonomics. As the company which generates the largest part of the DHDG’s turnover, it produces mid-price office, public-area and industrial chairs which are unique in terms of the ergonomic functions they offer. The company focuses in particular on the correct use of office chairs. “Improving quality of life through ergonomics by experiencing ergonomics” is the objective which applies to specialists and end consumers alike. Back in 1969, Dauphin revolutionised the market for office chairs by developing the first synchronised mechanism. As the inventor of the “Ergolab” – a versatile ergonomics laboratory – and the holder of over 100 patents and registered designs, Dauphin is a professed proponent of ergonomics.

The Trendoffice brand caters for the lower to middle segment of the ergonomic-seating market. Its products are aimed at young consumers and its business objective is to provide the best possible value for money along with modern, fresh design. Trendoffice is a declaration of the DHDG’s belief in providing unconventional yet comfortable seating.

The Züco brand name is synonymous with a sophisticated, Swiss-quality seating culture. Züco offers exclusively designed and architecturally-oriented chairs as well as lounge and seminar seating for the middle to top segments of the market. The Swiss manufacturer is a declaration of the DHDG’s belief in personality.

In order to provide businesses with even more comprehensive assistance when planning and designing futuristic workplaces which meet specific needs, the DHDG established Sectio Aurea Consult, a service and consultancy company which is independent of specific manufacturers. Sectio Aurea was set up four years ago and is synonymous with optimising the use of space through encouraging compactness and improving working environments.

All of the DHDG's subsidiary companies maintain the same high and dependable quality standards. Synergy effects, focusing on and complying with international standards, and a business policy which is oriented towards ethics, sustainability and environmental protection are of the highest order at the Dauphin HumanDesign Group.

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Dauphin HumanDesign Group GmbH & Co. KG
Press Department
Lena Winter
Tel. +49 (9158) 17-950
Fax +49 (9158) 17-790