The business concept was to supply the emerging “lifestyle sector”, targeting customers with high design and quality expectations but limited spending power. The company’s abstract, rather philosophical name – evoking the idea of selffulfilment through home design – was intended to signal an alternative to the familiar brands. The mission has been well served by collaborations with various German avant-garde furniture designers, including Jan Armgardt and Stefan Heiliger. The company's strategy of applying quality craftsmanship in the pursuit of modern design has a tradition going back to the Werkstätten movement (cf. Deutsche Werkstätten) and earlier. The dominance of natural materials points to Egoform's roots elsewhere in Germany: the green or ecological movement, several decades later. And we can also trace a much earlier tradition: Commercially, Egoform has followed the direction of the “social” movement prior to World War One, when manufacturers began building sturdy furniture for the middle classes, especially the young. Its designs in solid wood for lounges and kitchens, like the Chess table, which comes in 29 standard sizes (plus customized dimensions on request), exemplify the orientation on customer requirements. Wicker furniture, system furniture, chests of drawers and sofas have also entered the program during Egoform's evolution into a full-range supplier. The multi-use adjustable couch Mio ( re- issued 2004 as Vis à Vis) and the roll- away, swivelling workstation cum dining table Roll-it (both by Jan Armgardt) are among the early multifunctional models. In 2001 the trademark rights were sold to the Steinhoff group (likewise based in the Ammerland region), but Egoform products have retained their distinctive profile. From the outset the focus has been on elegant simplicity and functionality, typified in designs like the mobile coffee table Kayra. This approach has, of course, absorbed the latest trends. Take for example the bench seats (2006 by Andreas Reichert) in the Living Soul collection. They are supplied as a corner seat, either with or without a back. This latest comeback of the tried and trusted corner seat answers a desire of many customers to slide in, pub-style, alongside the others for a cosy meal at home.