© 2004 by Design History Society
Merchandising the Modern: Gilbert Rohde at Herman Miller
Independent scholar
From 1932 to 1944, as design consultant to the Herman Miller Furniture Company in Zeeland, Michigan, Gilbert Rohde (1894–1944) both introduced modern design to the corporation and played a significant role in its merchandising. This article discusses the innovative techniques Rohde developed to promote his modern, and in particular modular, furniture to store buyers, retailers and consumers. Through catalogues, sales bulletins, showrooms and publicity, a campaign was launched to explain the modular concept and to demonstrate its advantages for twentieth-century living. For Herman Miller's retail franchisees, Rohde provided comprehensive specifications for store displays in order to ensure the correct presentation of the company's products. By 1944, the robust consumer acceptance of Rohde's modern furniture enabled Herman Miller to position itself as the pre-eminent American manufacturer of modern furniture. Rohde's strategies laid the foundation for the future direction of Herman Miller and the success it achieved in the post-war era.
Key Words: furniture—industrial design—marketing—Miller, Herman—Rohde, Gilbert—United States