History

Michael Taylor

Michael Taylor Designs, Inc. was launched in 1985 by Michael Taylor and Paul Weaver to market the high-end residential furniture Taylor had designed or collected. 

Over the last 30 years Michael Taylor Designs has come to be synonymous with elegance, quality, and sophistication. Taylor’s interior design work is recognized and renowned worldwide and has been extensively published. The Company’s carefully edited lines of furniture and accessories reflect a contemporary sensibility while never losing sight of their traditional heritage.

Many influential decorators have worked in a signature style, but few contributed as many enduring influential furnishings to the design market as did Michael Taylor. His interiors appeared in every major magazine from the beginning of his career in the 1950’s to, quite literally, the end. Michael was the designer’s designer. His sense of scale was wonderment unequaled.

Consistently denouncing the cluttered and pretentious, he had a simple ethos: when you take something out, you must increase the size of what’s left. The inventor of what has come to be known as the California Look, he became famous for white-walled, light-filled rooms with boldly over scaled furniture and decorative accessories. Taylor fans recognize his work to be pure and simple but by no means plain – a combination of rusticity and glamour.

More than a decade after his death, Taylor’s reputation as an innovator in the world of home design glows undiminished. “You can look at a picture of a room he designed in 1953, and it still looks wonderful today”, notes New York designer Albert Hadley.

In 2009, Michael Taylor Designs was purchased by LCP Investments, Inc., a new company formed by Mr. Lee Pierce. Lee spent over 10 years as CEO and President of Rucker Fuller, a San Francisco Steelcase Dealership, which under Lee’s direction became the largest, most successful dealership in the market. Prior to acquiring Rucker Fuller Lee was Vice President of Sales for Knoll International in New York.

Michael Taylor Designs has created collections meticulously edited for today’s consumer at the top. Lee Pierce, a highly visible spokesman for the company, has succeeded in identifying and further establishing the work upon which Taylor’s claim of importance and legacy are founded. According to Lee, “I am excited about the possibilities for growing the Michael Taylor Designs brand with new products and programs. I have a strong respect for the quality and expectations that the brand represents. The company will continue to serve the interior design trade with creativity and responsiveness. We also plan to enhance our position by seeking additional lines to represent.”

Michael Taylor is one of the most revered designers of the Twentieth Century and Michael Taylor Designs is ushering in the Twenty-first Century by bringing new furniture, lighting and fabric lines in each of the five corporate showrooms. New lines range from period antiques and masterfully crafted reproductions, to outdoor furniture inspired by contemporary architecture. We continue to bring quality, service and exceptional product to our dedicated clients and welcome first-time visitors to our showrooms.