Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau.
Notoriety and awards, however, were not
why Nienkämper got into the furniture
business when he first arrived in Canada
in 1960. He was seeking to forge his own
path away from his mother’s “musty” an-
tique business in Germany. Nienkämper
began by importing furniture from Italy,
but the process was too slow and not cost-
effective enough, so he and his partner,
Beatrix Nienkämper, began manufacturing
European furniture with a licensed agree-
ment to use designers works. In 1968,
Nienkämper opened his first showroom in
Toronto, which is still there today. In the
1990s, they opened a 120,000-square-foot
factory, also located in Toronto, where all
of their manufacturing takes place.
The company grew to incorporate Cana-
dian and American designers and moved
into the American market. They opened
showrooms in major cities including Chi-
“I find that, especially when we are dealing with clients outside of North
America, they get some comfort in knowing that we are one of the best
run companies.” Klaus Nienkämper, Owner
42 business elite canada
H
MAY/JUNE 2015
