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Furniture Label Eva Opens Its First Store In A Heritage Carlton Home

Founded by husband and wife team Amanda Niu and Ken Lau, Eva has been offering quality, affordable bedding and furniture exclusively online since 2017.

Now, after experimenting with various pop-up stores last year, the couple have made their biggest move yet — opening Eva’s first bricks and mortar store in a historic Victorian terrace dwelling.

The Eva Carlton House showroom on Faraday Street offers a unique shopping experience in a cosy space that feels like home.

Written
by
Emily Holgate
|
Photography
by
Supported by Eva

Hideaway Coffee Table. Everyday Sofa in Olive. Ceramic Sculpture (left) by Tessy King from Pepite. Ranges by Wayne Eager from Artbank. Arabella Quartzite by CDK Stone.

Slideaway Sofa Bed in Terracotta. Ceramic Sculpture (left) by Tessy King from Pepite.

Hideaway Coffee Table. Everyday Sofa in Olive. Ranges by Wayne Eager from Artbank.

Ceramic Sculpture by Tessy King from Pepite. Arabella Quartzite by CDK Stone.

Slideaway Sofa Bed in Terracotta. Ceramic Sculpture (left) by Tessy King from Pepite.

Kin Dining Table. Kin Dining Chairs. Ceramic Warm Bottle Vessel (left) by Tessy King from Pepite. Ceramic Wall Sculpture (right) by Dawn Vachon from Pepite.

The Eva Timber Bed Frame. Large Ceramic Sculpture (middle left) by Stephanie Phillips from Pepite. Ceramic Vase (middle right) by Jade Thorsen from Pepite.

The Eva Timber Bed Frame. Hemp Linen Sheets in Olive and Oat. Body Orbit by Honey Long from Artbank.

The Eva Timber Bed Frame. Large Ceramic Sculpture (middle left) by Stephanie Phillips from Pepite. Ceramic Vase (middle right) by Jade Thorsen from Pepite.

Everyday Sofa in Cream Boucle. Hideaway Coffee TableLight Shadow (4 sec : 5 hours : 74 + 15 sec) by Danica Chappell from Artbank.

Everyday Sofa Armless Module in Graphite Boucle. Old Dusty after M Morrisey by Jake Walker from Artbank.

Co-founders, husband and wife duo, Amanda Niu and Ken Lau with their dog Milo.

Everyday Sofa in Cream Boucle. Hideaway Coffee Table. Ceramic Raku Vessel with Gold Links by Simone Karras from Pepite. Light Shadow (4 sec : 5 hours : 74 + 15 sec) by Danica Chappell from Artbank.

Testing the swatches!

The Eva Carlton House showroom is located in a heritage Victorian terrace.

‘Giving our customers the opportunity to experience furniture in a home-like environment bridges this gap for those who can’t quite visualise how a product looks and feels at home,’ Amanda explains.

Writer
Emily Holgate
Photography
5th of July 2024
Architect
Location

Carlton, VIC / Wurundjeri Country

After seven years offering bedding and furniture exclusively online, Melbourne-born design label Eva has opened its very first store!

Founded by husband and wife duo Amanda Niu and Ken Lau, Eva is a B Corp certified brand known for making quality, affordable products that are thoughtfully designed for both comfort and easy use. It all started in 2017 in a North Melbourne self-storage unit where Ken and Amanda stored inventory (and secretly used the facility’s Wi-Fi)!

With their respective backgrounds in electrical engineering and clinical neuropsychology, the couple soon found a rhythm working together that allowed their business to thrive — Ken now looks after the operations and product side of the company, while Amanda is in charge of marketing and customer service.

‘I love working with Ken everyday,’ Amanda says. ‘We’re obsessed with good design, and Eva is a fantastic outlet for us to make more good design happen.’

Following the success of its inaugural product — the signature mattress-in-a-box — Eva continued to expand. Soon, the brand came out with a range of sheets and pillows, before making a pivotal move and adding the Timber Bed Frame and other furniture to its inventory. It also grew beyond just Ken and Amanda, who now head up a team of 20!

Bringing us forward to today, the pair have just made their biggest move yet — putting down permanent bricks and mortar roots in Carlton after experimenting with various pop-up stores last year.

The new Eva Carlton House showroom is found in a heritage Victorian terrace dwelling, reflective of the brand’s mission to ‘help people feel at home’.

‘Giving our customers the opportunity to experience furniture in a home-like environment bridges this gap for those who can’t quite visualise how a product looks and feels at home,’ Amanda explains.

‘It also helps provide a space that we hope could inspire our customers — Eva is a brand for everyone so we wanted this space to be an elevated experience that people can aspire to live in.’

Upon entering the store, you’ll feel as though you’re walking into a friend’s cosy living room filled with beautiful furniture and artwork (including those from Artbank, a government initiative supporting Australian artists). This leads into a second living space, complete with a restored arch window that allows passers by to peek in from the outside!

Moving through the showroom, Eva’s bedroom furniture and linen is displayed in two snug bedrooms — one with an original fireplace which was uncovered by accident during the renovation process! The entire store truly honours the period home it inhabits and evokes a sense of belonging.

There’s nothing better than feeling at home, Amanda says. ‘We took this quite literally for our first Eva store.’

Eva Carlton House
186 Faraday Street
Carlton, VIC 3053
Wednesday to Friday 12-6pm
Saturday + Sunday 10am-6pm

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