Sometimes the best ideas come up in the most round about ways. Just ask the tradie brothers behind FEARON.
Jack Fearon, who’s originally a plumber, and his brother Mark, a boiler maker and welder, had just opened their own fabrication business in 2019 when they designed their first piece of furniture.
‘We were making lots of different things out of metal: staircases, large-scale windows, custom tables and doors,’ Jack says. ‘There were some off cuts from a tank in our warehouse and I decided to make a sample stool that we later called “The Chub”. I showed it to my friend Pip (who owns Curated Spaces), and she said she’d put them on her website to sell. And luckily, it popped off.’
The curvy, sculptural piece quickly became a must-have for any fans of chunky furniture, and the brand’s distinctive bright colour range – offering 12 options including bold yellow, to cobalt blue and bright red – garnered plenty of love online too.
FEARON’s rising success encourage the duo to expand their fabrication business to designing their own functional and fun aluminium objects. ‘The Chub’ has since evolved into a larger collection of coffee tables and consoles in the same playful silhouette. Now, Mark leads the fabrication side of the business, while Jack handles ‘the rest’. But they both design and create each piece by hand right here in Australia.
‘The main material we use is aluminium,’ Jack notes. ‘Not only because it’s light but also because it’s so durable and recyclable, and we’d like these pieces to be handed down through people’s families and friends. Or even better – see them become antiques one day.’
Some of their latest pieces include the multi-colour ‘Drew’s Drawers’, which were made for Jack’s daughter and feature a playful smiley face on the front. Plus, there’s a similarly cheeky set of drawers with rugged handles, and a sleek, geometric bed frame.
Jack says there’s more new designs in the works, with FEARON’s playful take on lights, desks and rocking chairs coming soon. And we have a feeling we’re going to love them!
Shop FEARON’s new online store here.