He was a very sensitive boy who grew up in a small village in Poland. Being near nature and close to his family was his everyday life. While eating sweets and picking apples from trees he dreamt of a life filled with creativity and fulfilled dreams … Although the place he lived was his oasis of peace in 2006, Lukasz Marciniak – now father, husband, upholsterer, and entrepreneur – moved to the UK. ‘Just after graduating from Economic Technical school, I decided to go to the UK for holidays but Great Britain became my second home, here I started a family.
’ His career started at the building site and while working hard, he was gaining knowledge and experience and soon became a construction assistant. He caught the bug when a long-term job, in a company dealing in the production of upholstered furniture, occurred. ‘Years of experience have shown me that upholstering is not only hotel chairs, but chic, taste and elegance that I introduce to every product that comes out of my hand.’ His bespoke creations are unique, it takes patience, skills, knowledge, and attention to detail to create one piece ‘This requires an individual approach and, above all, many hours of work, so that the final effect is stunning. When I was creating my first piece I felt pride, joy, and excitement. It’s a feeling that stays in my memory for a long time, and thanks to it I feel that what I do is important and valuable – and in times of worse days of uncertainty, I always come back to this moment to add wind in my sails, which every creator and artist needs.’
“Working as an upholsterer can be challenging and difficult at times, there are good and bad days but ‘what I love the most in my work is the creative process and being alone with a piece of wood at the beginning (mainly the frame of a bed, armchair, or sofa), which gradually takes shape after adding a soft sponge and applying a wonderful material so that the whole thing reflects its uniqueness, luxury, and comfort of its use. At the moment I am making a corner sofa with hand-painted material for a movie room for one of my clients. But the most challenging project so far was furnishing a luxury apartment near Buckingham Palace. The whole apartment was furnished by my work: beds, headboards, sofas, armchairs, etc.”
The workplace itself was intimidating and at the same time gave me the courage and a position on the market.’ Every person who creates needs inspiration and the inspiration is around us, sometimes it comes from challenging projects, sometimes from nature ‘My inspiration often comes from my clients. They are a mine of knowledge and ideas. Many times, they come with a photo from a magazine or social media asking if I can do it for them. In 99% of cases, the answer is YES. I find lots of inspiration on social media but most importantly through conversations with my son. He, as a young, 9-year-old man, has a head full of ideas, not affected by deficiencies or impossibilities, which is why we often allow ourselves to dream during our conversations or walks. I have this big dream to live in a sunny place – ultimately Spain, and work with whom I want (as employees and principals) and have unlimited possibilities to deliver the best products to my clients – which means freedom for me as a human being – a citizen of the world.
Written by Agnieszka Kowalczewska
