Max Designklassiker

Welcome to MAX. This shop features products for the home: tables, chairs, lamps and armchairs. But alongside their undoubted utility, they also add that bit extra. Each of these products helps you to design your living environment and your room.

Here, at Kanzleistrasse 111, just between Bäckeranlage and Kalkbreite, you’ll find furniture with charisma and flair – and right in the middle of it all, you’ll find shop owner Roman Dieziger. Anyone with an affinity for beauty and longevity who has ever entered this skilled interior designer’s shop will find carefully curated rarities and collector’s items dating from the 1920s to modern times. You can embark on a journey of discovery yourself in these 90 square metres, or have the owner tell you the story behind the objects.

Our conversation starts with the living habits of the fifties, continues with the proper care of high-quality objects – less is more, as the saying goes – and ends by establishing how a newly furnished flat can clear the mind. Among other things, it’s about how to make certain pieces of furniture part of your day-to-day life – ‘just like cats do’, or about what a small stool can be used for. Time continues to fly by. Roman reveals himself to be a passionate advocate for quality, an old romantic who makes you truly grasp his passion for furnishing.

‘My shop is for all those with a connection to beautiful, high-quality items,’ he emphasises. MAX boasts a varied range of products. Here, icons ranging from Verner Panton to Alvar Aalto, from Hans Wegner to Gerrit Rietveld (everyone recognises his sharp-edged wooden chair when they see it) line up alongside creations by unknown designers. If you are not on the search for a piece of furniture, you will also find small items as gifts or to keep for yourself – such as Scandinavian and Italian glass art, Memphis-style pottery, everyday objects and toys made of wood, or a small series of specialised books. ‘The price range of the items here starts at around a hundred francs.’ A classic item is not necessarily expensive or associated with a big name. ‘These are simply items that have stood the test of time, both in terms of quality and aesthetics.’

The shop owner makes the selection personally, and his taste has been ‘internationally approved’. During the 18 years since it was first founded, the shop has made a name for itself. Roman delivers across the world – to Australia, Asia, America, but first and foremost, to those closest to home. With him, one thing is certain: he promotes quality, and he restores with feeling. ‘Furniture of that era is based on very high-quality material substance. Pieces are often hand-made and can be restored again and again, making them sustainable too.’

Interior designers and collectors will find what they are looking for here, as will people wanting to add a highlight to their interior. The items are suitable for charming period apartments and modern environments alike. Vintage furniture lends every home an individual touch and a comfortable atmosphere.

To complement the vintage furniture, Roman Dieziger created a series of his own designs, which are manufactured by a carpentry business in the canton of Zurich. The sideboards, armchairs and daybeds are made to measure for customers by hand and according to their individual wishes. They have a 1950s look and perfectly match the rest of the range.

And even though a large portion of the business is now conducted online, this shop, with its furniture presented like works of art, is of huge importance: here, customers can also experience and feel their future favourite pieces with all their senses. What’s it like to run your hand across the new family dining table? Settling down in your new armchair with a book? What kind of atmosphere does the lamp create? ‘Even if it goes against the mainstream, shops are an asset to cities and neighbourhoods. That’s why I value shop design and window displays so highly’. This also makes MAX a popular locale that has been brightening up Kreis 4 since 2020.