York St John graduate aims to end flat pack woes

Alice Dixon, a recent graduate of York St John University’s Grad2Director programme, has been turning the heads of prospective investors and customers with her home furniture solution called fohr.

The product will enable customers to create their own shapes and designs in increments of 30 degree angles to revitalise existing furniture with adaptable, innovative joints and rods, achieving a fresh new look in a matter of minutes - without the typically expensive and labour-intensive process.

Alice, a former York St John University Design graduate, said: “You can fill a whole wall or just add a new shelf; fohr works with you and your space, the choice really is yours. Developed from a wide breadth of research into flat pack furniture, it is made of just four parts, which allow customers of all DIY ability to design their own furniture with ease. As it is so intuitive there is no need for instructions. But who says all you can make is furniture? The only limit is your imagination. So far, we've had everything from cat furniture to a plant pot!”

Alice’s success as a graduate on the Grad2Director programme follows the university’s positive track record in seeing 97% graduates landing full time work within six months of leaving the institution.

The Grad2Director programme is a specialised course to equip students with all the tools and funding necessary to become a company director. It has been developed in partnership between York St John University and Dr John Park, an international expert in product and services with nearly 30 years of experience at companies including Procter & Gamble and PepsiCo International. 

Alice added: “The Grad2Director programme is fantastic and inspiring. The programme really helped me get to grips with areas I was less comfortable with, such as projections. John helped me to look at the business from another angle, not just the product design and manufacturing aspect, which is where my skills lie. It's been a huge learning curve for me. The mission now is to bring out the creator in everyone and create a platform for people to show their own personality, in whatever form that may be through fohr.”

The Kickstarter campaign for fohr, which is patent-pending, will be launched on November 21^st.