Manufacturer · Germany · Rabenau (Oelsa)
Oelsa
VEB Vereinigte Polstermöbelindustrie Oelsa-Rabenau – state-owned upholstered furniture manufacturer from the Saxon chair-making centre of Oelsa-Rabenau in the GDR.
Pair of vintage modular armchairs / sofa, designed by Eberhard Geißler, Oelsa, Germany, 1970s
About the manufacturer
- Country
- Germany
- Location
- Rabenau (Oelsa)
Oelsa, now part of the Saxon town of Rabenau, has been a centre of chair and furniture production since the 19th century. In 1913, six chair factories operated here, the largest being Ernst Wolf & Cie., founded in 1879.
After 1945, the large chair factories in Rabenau were nationalised and merged into VEB Möbelindustrie Oelsa-Rabenau. In 1953, a vocational school was opened in Rabenau to train upholsterers, cabinetmakers and chairmakers, becoming the central training centre for the woodworking industry in the GDR.
In 1976, a lounge furniture set, model 3592, produced by VEB Vereinigte Polstermöbelindustrie Oelsa-Rabenau was presented at the autumn fair in Leipzig. In 1982 and 1984, upholstered furniture, including the EW 765 programme, was presented under the name VEB Polstermöbelkombinat Oelsa-Rabenau, which also included the upholstery fabric plant VEB Raumtextilien Braunsdorf. The furniture factory in Rabenau, employing around 200 people, remains the town’s largest employer.
