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HEMA
HEMA is a discount retail chain that started business as a dimestore. H.E.M.A. is an acronym for “Hollandsche Eenheidsprijzen Maatschappij Amsterdam” (Hollandic Standard Prices Company Amsterdam).
The company was founded in 1926 by Leo Meyer and Arthur Isaac. They already owned the luxury department store De Bijenkorf. Products were priced at 10, 25 or 50 cents (guilder).
In the 1950s, it was the first franchise organisation in the Netherlands and it still is the largest franchise operator in the country. In 1984, HEMA opened its first store abroad, in Belgium.
The company is characterised by relatively low pricing of generic housewares. Mostly made by and for HEMA, often with original design.
Today, 2019, HEMA is active in a big part of Europe: more than 750 stores in nine countries with 19.000 employees. Since 2007 it is a property of an investment fund.
Links (external links open in a new window)
Heinrich Linke website (archived)
History of Brilliant on their website
HEMA – History on the HEMA website
www.Memphis-Milano.org (archived)
Vintageinfo
Table lamp version of this floor lamp
1980s Memphis Style Floor Lamp
Materials: Round conical black base. Long black rod. Long thin black rod. Some metal and plastic parts. Red plastic details. Some brass and chrome parts. Black painted round conical aluminium lampshade, not painted inside. Porcelain G5 socket.
Total Height: 172 cm / 67.71” – adjustable
Lampshade: ∅ 12 cm / 4.72”
Base: ∅ 17 cm / 6.69”
Electricity: 1 bulb G5 halogen, 1 x 50 watt maximum, 12 volt. 220 volt to 12 volt transformer built-in the base. Any type of G5 lamp can be used. Not a specific one preferred.
Period: 1980s – Memphis Milan Style.
Designers: Heico Linke & Jens Plewa.
Manufacturer: Brilliant AG, Brilliantstraße 1, D-27442 Gnarrenburg, Germany.
Other versions: This 1980s Memphis style floor lamp also exists as a desk or table lamp. You can find it over here.
This lamp was produced by Brilliant Leuchten. In The Netherlands it was also sold by HEMA. This one is labelled HEMA. Other lamps have the Brilliant AG label. HEMA is not a lamp producer.
Heico Linke
Heico Linke (full name: Heinrich Linke) is a German industrial designer who designed a wide range of products between the late 1970s and the early 1990s, including several important lighting designs for Brillantleuchten (later Brilliant AG).
He studied Industrial Design at the University of Fine Arts (HFBK) in Hamburg from 1974 until 1979. Several of his early lamp designs originated as semester projects during his studies, some of which later entered (limited) production.
In early 1978, Heico Linke founded the design studio Linke Plewa Design together with Jens Plewa (and briefly Reinhardt Buchner). The studio was based in Hamburg-St. Pauli and operated until 1994. During this period, the office worked for a large number of industrial clients, designing products ranging from lamps and light systems to electronics, packaging, tools, toys, furniture, and medical devices.
Between 1986 and 1991, Linke-Plewa designed an extensive range of lighting products for Brillantleuchten. Many of these designs were developed around the emerging popularity of 12V halogen lighting and modular lighting systems. After the takeover of Brillantleuchten in 1991 and its transformation into Brilliant AG, large parts of this product range were abruptly discontinued.
From 1995 onward, Heico Linke worked as an in-house designer for ZACK, a leading European brand specialising in stainless steel home accessories. He remained with the company until May 2014. After leaving ZACK, he briefly ran his own company again for several years and subsequently retired.
Several of Linke’s lamp designs, especially from the late 1980s, are today frequently associated with the Memphis style. This is particularly true for the Circo series, which is often offered on the secondary market at very high prices and regularly (and incorrectly) attributed to Italian Memphis designers.
Brilliant Leuchten
Brilliant AG was founded in 1951 as Brillantglashütte oHG / Lippold und Tschammer in Gnarrenburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. The company originally operated as a glass factory, producing hand-blown lighting glass for light bulbs, using local peat and quartz sand as raw materials.
In 1953, the glassworks began producing glass pendant bowls, marking the first step towards the manufacturing of complete lighting fixtures. During the 1960s, the product range expanded and materials such as wood, metal, and plastic were introduced alongside glass.
In the 1970s, the company increasingly focused on the finishing and assembly of luminaires using externally sourced components. To accommodate this shift, the industrial glass production facility was sold, and the company was renamed Brillantleuchten AG.
During the 1980s, Brillantleuchten AG moved further away from glass production and specialised in spotlights and metal pendant lamps. In 1985, the (then still family-owned) company was listed on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt and Bremen.
In 1991, as part of its international expansion, the company adopted its final name: Brilliant AG. The word “Leuchten” was dropped and a second “i” was added to the brand name. Between 1994 and 1997, the Brilliant Industrial Park was developed in Gnarrenburg, including new warehouse buildings and a high-bay warehouse. By the late 1990s, exports accounted for almost 50% of total turnover.
In the 2000s, increasing international competition and price pressure led to the relocation of production abroad. Sales, administration, design, and logistics remained based in Gnarrenburg. On 24 September 2004, the British group The National Lighting Company Ltd became the main shareholder. This transition enabled a successful restructuring, and in 2006Brilliant AG returned to profitability.
Many thanks to Heico Linke for all the help and info.
1980s Memphis Style Floor Lamp – Company Labels
