Founded in 1990 in Paris, Baxter is both an Italian design company and a cultural and territorial melting pot where the high-end furniture production of Italy’s Brianza region meets the knowledge of the design capital Milan, the hub of Italian creativity.
For more than 30 years, the Italian brand has combined experience with passion in the spirit of the 'Made in Italy' philosophy. From generations of master saddle-makers, founders Luigi and Paolo Bestetti launched Baxter with the aim of continuing the Italian furniture tradition while simultaneously showcasing the finest leathers. Working closely with designers including Studiopepe, Piero Lissoni and Paola Navone, Baxter is renowned for reinventing the traditions of Italian leather through innovation, always making the material the hero of each collection. The Open Air collections are designed for patios, terraces, loggias, gardens and poolsides, and for use throughout the home, the materials coexisting harmoniously with Baxter’s indoor collection.
In 2015 Baxter acquired the historic President cinema in the centre of Milan, bringing its interior design and hospitality philosophy to one of the most symbolic places of Milanese culture. Inside the unique atmosphere of the original 1970s multiplex, the Baxter Cinema takes you into the art of Italian design through the Baxter furniture catalogue, exploring the brand's infinite compositional choices alongside an exclusive in-house bookshop. Further deepening their connection with the cultural history of Italy, in 2022 Baxter opened Lake Como’s Casa sul Lago. A magnificent Art Nouveau building, its serene atmosphere overlooking Lake Como has offered intellectuals and creatives from all over the world a refuge from the city. Once a private residence, Baxter has transformed Casa sul Lago into a research and experimentation hub where evolving visions of the domestic space are given tangible form.
From March to October, Baxter’s Casa sul Lago is open for guests to immerse themselves in the lakeside villa where the creative team develop innovative interior design projects inspired by the spirit of the location. The colours of the rooms, the wood panelling and mouldings, the objects and accessories define the details of a spatial rulebook that construct the ideal setting for each new collection.
In 2015 Baxter acquired the historic President cinema in the centre of Milan, bringing its interior design and hospitality philosophy to one of the most symbolic places of Milanese culture. Inside the unique atmosphere of the original 1970s multiplex, the Baxter Cinema takes you into the art of Italian design through the Baxter furniture catalogue, exploring the brand's infinite compositional choices alongside an exclusive in-house bookshop. Further deepening their connection with the cultural history of Italy, in 2022 Baxter opened Lake Como’s Casa sul Lago. A magnificent Art Nouveau building, its serene atmosphere overlooking Lake Como has offered intellectuals and creatives from all over the world a refuge from the city. Once a private residence, Baxter has transformed Casa sul Lago into a research and experimentation hub where evolving visions of the domestic space are given tangible form.
From March to October, Baxter’s Casa sul Lago is open for guests to immerse themselves in the lakeside villa where the creative team develop innovative interior design projects inspired by the spirit of the location. The colours of the rooms, the wood panelling and mouldings, the objects and accessories define the details of a spatial rulebook that construct the ideal setting for each new collection.
‘Baxter is the story of encounters, ideas, but above all of people.’
Luigi and Paolo Bestetti, Founders, Baxter
The quality of leather craftsmanship
Baxter transforms the craft of leather making through research, bringing the best out of the materials they use and the designers they collaborate with. Experimentation at Baxter focuses on leather and the talents of tanners, designers and makers. With over 100 collaborators whose skills shape the nuances of each sofa, chair, bed, table and storage unit, members of the extensive Baxter team are described as ‘a large and not so ordinary family.’
The first sofa was made from a unique Brianza leather considered by the tanneries too thick for furniture. It was this challenge that created the prototype for the first design, Alfred, a Chester-style sofa where the feel of the robust leather is the defining feature. That discovery inside a tiny factory in regional Italy would become the alchemy for every collection to follow. It was there that they studied the full potential of leather which have all become the core of Baxter’s research.
The Baxter catalogue brings together the finest pieces of leather which are then processed with complete respect for the natural material to preserve its original quality and sensory properties. The result is a product that stands out above all for its comfort, but also for its tactile characteristics, depth of colour and rich palette. This quest for excellence is extended to all of the materials that go into Baxter's furniture products, from marble and precious woods to outdoor fabrics and metals embellished with exclusive craftsmanship.
Over the years this distinctive tailored approach to the crafting of its products has evolved into a study of spaces, giving form to the aesthetic vision of the brand. The world of Baxter is focused on interior design projects that are original and constantly evolving.
The first sofa was made from a unique Brianza leather considered by the tanneries too thick for furniture. It was this challenge that created the prototype for the first design, Alfred, a Chester-style sofa where the feel of the robust leather is the defining feature. That discovery inside a tiny factory in regional Italy would become the alchemy for every collection to follow. It was there that they studied the full potential of leather which have all become the core of Baxter’s research.
The Baxter catalogue brings together the finest pieces of leather which are then processed with complete respect for the natural material to preserve its original quality and sensory properties. The result is a product that stands out above all for its comfort, but also for its tactile characteristics, depth of colour and rich palette. This quest for excellence is extended to all of the materials that go into Baxter's furniture products, from marble and precious woods to outdoor fabrics and metals embellished with exclusive craftsmanship.
Over the years this distinctive tailored approach to the crafting of its products has evolved into a study of spaces, giving form to the aesthetic vision of the brand. The world of Baxter is focused on interior design projects that are original and constantly evolving.
The creative force of Paola Navone
One of only a handful of family run furniture manufacturers remaining in Italy, Baxter is more than a design company. It's a business where the chemistry of friendship and the diversity of unique skills are encouraged in the quest to break new ground. The company collaborates with Italian and international designers and promotes young talent, an approach that revolves around people and relationships where synergies and engagement are the cornerstones of an inclusive working environment. That family includes the celebrated Turin-born architect, Paola Navone, whose intuitive and unconventional working method is perfectly matched with the Baxter brand. It is Navone’s design know-how and ability to open up new paths with leather, to make it come alive, that has shaped their collaboration.
‘When I met Baxter many years ago, I immediately fell in love with that energy inside the company and reflected in the manufacture of leather. Leather with natural dyes and therefore leather in all its imperfections. It was really an extraordinary savour-faire…,’ remarked Navone, who began her career working with Italian design legends, Ettore Sottsass, Andrea Branzi and Alessandro Mendini. Paola Navone’s collections feature handcrafted details and materials that are light and weather resistant, with primitive accents and colours that enhance their connection with nature. Earthy materials such as terracotta, lava stone and marble, bamboo and wood incorporate sustainable practices, their permanence in tune with Baxter’s philosophy of radical permeability between indoor and outdoor worlds.
‘I definitely think this leather has got an informal and very sensual aspect, being attractive also for all those people who have never loved leather.’
Paola Navone, designer