Modern (Household furniture) Family – D Magazine

For Tanner Moussa and his more youthful sister, Mackenzie Lewis, good furniture is in their blood. Their paternal grandfather, Stanley Moussa, established Best Imports. Their uncle George Moussa launched Ambella Residence Selection. And their father, Mark Moussa, released Arteriors, his celebrated residence structure and lights company, 35 yrs ago. “Everyone in our extended relatives listed here in Dallas has some form of an entrepreneurial spirit,” Tanner states.  

As he and his sister grew up, home furnishings and home layout have been a standard part of evening meal table conversations. Commencing in middle college, Tanner and Mackenzie invested summers in the Arteriors warehouse, wiring lamps and working on the assembly line. They also traveled with their father on sourcing outings all in excess of the earth. When she was in college or university, Mackenzie and her father spent two weeks in India. There, they shopped  for antiques and valuable stones and met with artisans who experienced passed their trades down through generations. 

“India changed me,” Mackenzie says. Just after getting her diploma in wonderful arts, she began operating at Arteriors whole time. It took her brother lengthier to make his way back again to the family small business. He spent a 10 years in New York, operating in accounting and consulting. But he nonetheless traveled with his dad to trade demonstrates. Eventually he requested himself, “Why thrust away a little something that is truly in my blood?” Tanner to start with went to work for the on line luxurious property business A person Kings Lane prior to returning to Dallas and Arteriors in 2019, appropriate just before COVID-19 struck.  

The pandemic and the rise of virtual searching, Tanner and Mackenzie say, convinced them it was the fantastic time to crack out on their individual. They left Arteriors in September 2020, and past thirty day period they officially introduced Mous, their new line of scenario merchandise, upholstered seating, and ceramics. The 27-piece selection, named Narrative Arc, attracts from their quite a few adventures all-around the environment.  

“Looking back at the pieces we have collected through our travels, the architecture we’ve been impressed by, the cultures we have been encouraged by—it definitely was a enjoyable method of figuring out what we desired this first collection to glance like,” Tanner states. 

The target is to pair design with features. The ivory vellum Diptych desk, for instance, functions lesser drawers for office supplies as very well as a cabinet for larger sized goods, this sort of as a printer. They also wanted a “little ingredient of surprise” in every piece, Mackenzie says. It could be utilizing two upholstery fabrics and an oak veneer in a chair or hiding an LED gentle inside of the Cusp cabinet. 

Mous’ tiny Design and style District–adjacent showroom is at the moment only open by appointment. But the siblings hope that their brand’s larger on line presence will allow them to keep nimble and hold up with the transforming desires and wishes of customers. 

“It’s been really satisfying and freeing,” Tanner states. “And it’s assisted me and Mackenzie grow leaps and bounds with each individual other possessing to do this on our personal.” 

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This story at first ran in the October challenge of D Magazine with the headline, “Modern Relatives.” Produce to [email protected].