A Mad Men obsession combined with a need to furnish his new apartment saw Will Fan go on a mad hunt in search of an industrial 60s lamp and a Don Draper-esque office drinking cart. Not surprisingly, it wasnโt easy; eBay and Gumtree meant sifting through used mattresses and cheap imports and weekends became drives aroundย Sydney checking out questionable leads.
What became abundantly clear to Will, was Sydney had a very scattered group of boutique bricks-and-mortar sellers, collectors listing on eBay and standalone online craftsmen. These were people selling vibrant bespoke designs and revived vintage pieces who didnโt really have an online presence. Not only was there no go-to place for everyone to connect, there was also no easy way for buyers or enthusiasts to find them.
So, Couchelo was born. The recently launched app is a simple to use, curated online marketplace, where only the best items from the most interesting sellers are available in one place. โIt is about usingย updatedย technology to help a niche market become more accessible to appreciation,โ explains Will.
Enlisting the help of friends Fei Yao and Si-Si Dai, Will and the team are self-claimed โdesign industry outsidersโ but thatโs the exact reason they wanted to create Couchelo, to help make it easy for people like them to find amazing dรฉcor.
Still in its early days, the Couchelo app is in its beta phase, but as its popularity grows, so will the complexity of the app.ย โWhat we love about it now is the simplicity of scrolling through photos of the beautiful pieces in your nearby location,โ says Will.ย โYet as the number of items for sale on Couchelo grows, you will start to see updates for new features including search,ย dรฉcorย categories and even exciting recommendations.โ
While it is currently Sydney-based, Coucheloโs sights are set much higher. โWe want to showcase our favourite home-grown boutiques and designers to the world. To do this, we need to start bringing all these independent creatives in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and other design cities on board. We also want to work collaboratively with the 160,000 design professionals in Australia to create a curated marketplace with a collection of unique furniture and homewares.โ