Steelcase Inc. is a company that creates, produces, and sells furniture for offices and homes. The company also studies how people work and design spaces, which helps it make furniture, specialized systems, and tools for workspaces. Its products are mainly sold through a worldwide group of independent dealers. The company was started in 1912 and is located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA.
History
Originally called the Metal Office Furniture Company, it was founded in 1912 by Peter Martin Wege, who had filed about 25 patents related to sheet metal and fireproofing industries. Its early products included fireproof metal safes and four-drawer metal filing cabinets.
In 1914, the company received its first product patent for "The Victor," a fireproof steel wastebasket. The Victor became popular because it was lightweight, made possible by a special method of bending flat steel into right angles to create boxes. It also helped prevent fires, which were common indoors at the time, especially in workplaces where smoking was widespread.
In 1915, the company began manufacturing and distributing steel desks after designing and making 200 for Boston's first skyscraper, the Custom House Tower.
The name Steelcase came from an advertising campaign to promote metal office furniture over wood. It was trademarked in 1921. The company officially changed its name to Steelcase, Inc. in 1954.
In 1937, the company worked with Frank Lloyd Wright on office furniture for the Johnson Wax Headquarters. The partnership lasted two years and led to the creation of some of the first modern workstations.
After becoming a leading company in the office furniture industry in the 1960s due to high sales, it expanded into new markets during the 1970s, including Asia, Europe, and North Africa. In 1973, it introduced the Series 9000 furniture line, a panel-based office system that became a top-selling product and its main brand.
Also in 1973, Steelcase delivered the largest single furniture shipment to the new Sears Tower. The shipment included 43,565 pieces of furniture and furnished 44 floors.
In 1996, Steelcase became the majority owner of the design firm IDEO. IDEO's CEO, David M. Kelley, was named vice president of technical discovery and innovation by Steelcase.
At the same time, Steelcase was found to be at fault in a patent infringement lawsuit brought by Haworth, another furniture company. The Michigan-based company was ordered to pay $211.5 million in damages and interest, ending a 17-year legal dispute with Haworth.
Steelcase became a publicly traded company in 1998 under the symbol SCS. During the 2000s, the company reorganized its workforce and began using modern technologies in its products. In 2000, it opened Steelcase University, a center for employee training and learning.
Steelcase's wood furniture plant in Caledonia, MI, earned LEED certification in 2001, becoming the first plant to receive this certification. In 2002, Steelcase partnered with IBM to create BlueSpace, a "smart office" prototype using new office technologies.
In 2010, after selling its shares in IDEO back to its managers, Steelcase and its former subsidiary launched new models for higher education classrooms called LearnLabs.
In January 2016, the company recalled 12 models of Steelcase "Rocky" style swivel chairs made between 2005 and 2015 due to a fall hazard. In 2025, HNI Corporation announced it would acquire Steelcase for $2.2 billion. The acquisition was completed in December 2025.
In 1989, the company opened the pyramid-shaped Steelcase Inc. Corporate Development Center, which included ten research laboratories and workspaces designed to encourage teamwork across different fields for product development. After being empty for several years, the building was sold to Switch, Inc. in 2016.
Noteworthy products
One of the company's earliest products was "The Victor," a fireproof steel wastebasket introduced in 1914. It was used widely in offices when preventing fires was very important.
In 1945, Steelcase created modular metal office furniture systems. These systems used standard parts and could be arranged in many different ways. This allowed offices to set up desks and tables in various configurations and made it easier to repair, replace, or reuse parts over time.
In 1946, Steelcase released the Multiple 15 desks. These desks set standard sizes for desks and became the industry standard used by many companies.
In 1973, the Series 9000 was released. It became the most popular line of office systems made by Steelcase.
In 1999, the company introduced the Leap chair. It sold 5,000 units each week during its first year and became one of the company's best-known products. The chair had eight adjustable parts, including height, armrests, lumbar support, seat depth, and back positioning. It took four years to design, cost $35 million, and led to 11 studies by experts and 23 patents.
In 2013, the company released the Gesture chair. It was designed to support how workers naturally sit.
Brands
The company has several companies, including AMQ, Coalesse, Halcon, Orangebox, Smith System, and Viccarbe, as well as other brands like Steelcase Health and Education. In 1990, the company created an office accessories brand named Details. In 1993, Steelcase launched Turnstone, a line of furniture made for small businesses and home offices. Designtex, a company that makes interior textiles and upholstery, was bought by Steelcase in 1998.
Nurture was created in 2006 to make products for the health care industry, such as furniture and interiors for waiting rooms, offices, and clinics. In 2014, Nurture was renamed Steelcase Health.
In 2008, Steelcase combined three of its companies (Brayton International, Metro Furniture, and Vecta) to create Coalesse. Coalesse products are designed for spaces where people work and live, showing how home and office use often overlap in modern work habits.
Company culture
In 1985, Steelcase bought the Meyer May House, which was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The company restored the house and opened it to the public in 1987. A corporate art program helped the company collect artwork from artists such as Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, and Dale Chihuly.
Steelcase has a research group named WorkSpace Futures that studies trends in the workplace. In 2010, the company started a three-year project to update its headquarters in Grand Rapids. The project aimed to improve employee productivity and well-being. For example, the company redesigned its cafeteria into a space that serves food and also allows meetings, socializing, and independent work.
Steelcase has reported efforts to support sustainability. These include reducing packaging, using facilities located near production areas to shorten shipping distances, and cutting greenhouse gas emissions and water use. The company has set goals to reduce its environmental impact. By 2012, Steelcase reported less waste, emissions, and water use compared to earlier years. The company has also studied its supply chain and materials to improve product sustainability. It has used products certified by Cradle to Cradle standards.
In 2020, Steelcase announced that its operations had reached carbon neutrality. The company set a goal to become carbon negative by 2030, with targets that match climate science goals. Steelcase has also focused on using green chemistry and has reduced the use of materials like Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in its products.
Awards
Steelcase has earned awards and honors in the design field, including recognition at NeoCon and the Red Dot Design Award. Recently, the company has received several Best of NeoCon awards and praise from design magazines like Interior Design. Steelcase has also been listed in Fortune magazine's "World's Most Admired Companies" rankings.