Tessa Furniture, Bayswater, closes due to ‘dwindling demand’ for Australian-made products

After 47 years in Bayswater, a furniture business has closed its doors in what a customer called an “absolute tragedy”. And one longstanding worker says there is one reason why they could no longer compete in the marketplace.

Justin Blaha and Neville Wathen at the Tessa Furniture factory in Bayswater. Picture: Andy Brownbill

The manager of a longstanding Knox factory has blamed a dwindling demand for Australian-made furniture for its closure.

Tessa Furniture, which sold its products through retailers including Harvey Norman and Berkowitz, closed on June 30 after more than four decades.

It offloaded its stock in a factory sale on their final weekend and only two dining tables were left behind.

Tessa Furniture was established in 1968 by Fred Lowen and Howard Lindsay, and they opened their factory in Bayswater’s Jersey Rd in 1972.

Justin Blaha, who has worked at the factory for 24 years, said the decision to close was made by business owners in Sydney.

He said he and the 16 other staff at the factory would now look for new jobs.

“We’ve known about it now for eight weeks and it’s pretty sad,” Mr Blaha said.

“When the customers came in during the sale and expressed their sympathy and how they’re going to miss the products, that was a time for us to reflect on how successful it has been over the years.”

Readers expressed their sadness over Tessa Furniture’s closure on Knox Leader’s Facebook page.

Aus Martin, who had a Tessa sofa suite from the 1970s, described it as an “absolute tragedy” while Regine Knauerhase raved about her two comfy Mancini couches.

Mr Blaha said Bayswater was a supportive community and a great place for the business to have been based.

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He said the closure was “an example of how local manufacturing can find it tough competing against imported products”.

“A lot of people are happy to buy a lower-priced product irrespective of where it’s from, and the Australian-made product which is higher priced and usually better quality is not stocked in as many stores anymore,” Mr Blaha said.

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