Our history
From Martial Becquart to Auboi cabinetmaking: our history, the workshops.
Ever since he bought his first wood-burning stove when he was a teenager, Martial has always believed that woodworking would be his life’s work. From an early age, he made a number of boxes, chests and chests of drawers from reclaimed wood. However, he went on to study and pursue a career in industry.
In 1995 he decided to return to his passion. So, after 20 years working in industry, production management and technical direction, in the spinning mill and then the cardboard industry, Martial Becquart opened his own cabinet-making business, the Auboi company.
Why AUBOI, we are often asked?
Several factors had to be taken into account when choosing the sign:
– First and foremost, wood for cabinetry,
Also, a short, easy-to-remember name.
– And a name that begins with one of the first letters of the alphabet. In 1995, the Internet didn’t exist, and it was necessary to be in the first lines of the phone book and minitel when starting a business,
– A music lover, Martial also likes the resonance with the musical instrument.
The first cabinet-making workshop
This workshop is located in Maulévrier Sainte Gertrude, in the hamlet of Sainte-Gertrude, a small valley near Caudebec-en-Caux, now Rives-en-Seine, in Normandy.
Initially, Martial Becquart responds to various requests and creates tables, kitchens, bathrooms, bookcases, beds, sideboards, dressing rooms, staircases and gates ….
At the same time, he has developed a very distinctive concept of furniture that enables him to stand out from the crowd and offer a different kind of furniture, ‘Other Furniture ’, the kind that doesn’t yet exist, the kind we’ve only dreamed of.
What he loves is analysing people’s needs, studying and designing furniture that is ergonomic, functional and, of course, aesthetically pleasing. He focuses on the evolution of old techniques to adapt them to our times.
Martial Becquart is a pioneer. Very early on, when computers had not yet entered our homes, he proposed furniture designed to integrate computers and screens …. into simple, uncluttered pieces of furniture.
Little by little, Martial Becquart developed his furniture line by combining two types of wood, oak and ash. The line is sober and elegant.
Yvetot, the second workshop
The Maulévrier Sainte Gertrude workshop is too small
to meet these demands.
In 2000, the cabinetmaker moved to a workshop in Yvetot.
But then the furniture ‘giants’ arrived on the market, and the real price of work was lost. Many cabinet makers closed down.
As well as cabinet-making, Martial developed another passion, painting.
Workshop furniture
So, with little time to devote to his passion, he imagined a piece of furniture that would enable him to keep all his equipment close at hand and his work in progress always ready.
In 2004, he produced the first prototype of a ‘studio cabinet’. This piece of furniture combines workspaces and drawers to store all his painting equipment. The furniture is made of solid beech for the structure, and medium for the tops and drawer units.
His friends and family were enthusiastic about the concept, and his artist friends encouraged him to offer the furniture to a wider public. That’s why we decided to try a ‘change of direction’ by proposing this concept.
To this end, an initial advertisement in Artiste magazine confirmed the desire for this piece of furniture.
At the same time, we decided to register the model with the INPI and the OHIM before attending a number of trade fairs to present this new concept.
Demand grew for additional storage units and furniture for other activities.
The ‘leaf chest’ and the sewing cabinet were created to meet these demands.
The prototype Artist’s Studio Unit
Prototypes of the sewing cabinet and the leaf chest.
The assembly workshop
The furniture was produced in small batches.
Once again, space was an issue, and the need for an assembly workshop became apparent.
As a result, a timber-framed workshop was built in our garden.
For 14 years, the cabinetmaker adapted to working in two workshops.
Auzebosc, the third move for the Auboi cabinetmaker's workshop
While demand is growing, the lack of space is not conducive to the development of our cabinetmaking business.
After a long period of reflection, we took the plunge in 2018.
Construction began on a workshop combining the two, on a small business park near Yvetot in Auzebosc.
In 2019, we will be moving our workshop and office to 160 rue de la Chapelle, on the Caux Multipôles business park in Auzebosc.