Inside the new Moroso Apartment at XTRA — An Italian-Singapore collaboration

Interview by Janice Seow

Founded in 1952 and still family-run, Moroso can be described as the “spirited child” of contemporary Italian furniture design — bold, expressive and drawn to unconventional ideas. Now, its first home-style Moroso Apartment concept anywhere in the world has arrived at XTRA in Singapore, in a cosy, cosmopolitan setting designed by Singapore-based studio MassoneOng, where Italian craft meets local sensibilities. 

Anchored by emblematic pieces such as Patricia Urquiola’s Pacific and Gogan sofas, Ron Arad’s One Page armchair and Zanellato/Bortotto’s Mangiafuoco tables, the space feels more like a lived-in home than a showroom. During their visit for the launch, we sat down with Moroso president Roberto Moroso and his daughter, Caterina Moroso, recently appointed area manager for the APAC region and part of the third generation, to talk about identity, craftsmanship and what this collaboration means for the brand in Singapore.

This new Moroso Apartment at XTRA reinterprets Moroso’s collections through a local lens. What excites you most about this collaboration?

Caterina: What I love is the immersive quality of the space. It’s not a traditional showroom: it’s a home-like environment where design, culture, and lifestyle converge. Seeing how various pieces in our collection interact with the Singaporean context is incredibly inspiring. It shows the universal appeal of Moroso while highlighting local sensibilities.  

It’s interesting that we didn’t do this in Europe. In the entire world, we chose to have the first such collaboration here with a local design studio, MassoneOng, to showcase how Italian and Singaporean tastes in design blend so well.  

Moroso has a distinctive identity — expressive, sculptural, unapologetically Italian. As the world changes, how do you evolve it without losing what makes it unmistakably Moroso?

Roberto: We are actually storytellers. We tell the stories of the architects, designers and artists who work with us — those who are innovative and forward-looking. At the same time, quality manufacturing is deeply embedded in our history, and we’ve always maintained our roots in the artisanal nature of our products.

It’s this balance that defines Moroso’s identity — expressive, sculptural and grounded in craftsmanship. To evolve without losing this essence, we focus on how our pieces can respond to new ways of living — respecting tradition while remaining open to innovation.

Under Patrizia Moroso’s creative direction, the company has worked with design icons like Patricia Urquiola and Ron Arad. What do you look for in designer collaborations today, and has that evolved over time?

Roberto: My sister, Patrizia Moroso (Moroso’s creative director), has always had the beautiful ability to identify the right architect or designer at the right time and place. It’s not just the ‘name’ of the designer that’s important. We started collaborating with Ron Arad and Patricia Urqiuola at the very beginning of their careers. We started to become friends with them when they had something very important to say and to showcase. It always starts first with a relationship, and there’s a story, and then there’s a big brainstorming, and that’s how we do business in Moroso.

Take for example the Pebble Rubble by Swedish studio Front Design – one of our best-selling collections. It’s inspired by real pebbles you would find outside. It started with an art exhibition before it developed into a commercial product. With this project, we were discussing what the new frontier was for furniture design during Covid-19 that uprooted our lives entirely. Rather than the physical building of the product, the focus actually first started with the storytelling of the product – what the product was trying to tell consumers.

What we developed together were exact replicas of pebbles found in nature, with fabric based exactly on zoomed in high-resolution photographs of ones found in different types of environments in the forest, whether it was more blue being closer to the water, or brown, or dark/light neutrals. It’s really cool, and a piece that you could spend half of a dinner conversation talking about.

Italian craftsmanship is Moroso’s soul. Yet global manufacturing is increasingly tech-driven. How do you keep the “human hand” alive while embracing innovation?

Roberto: We have created a lot of innovative products, and innovative processes that require high-end machinery and technology. But at the same time, craftsmanship is the real heartbeat of Moroso, and it’s possible as we are an independent, family-owned company. We believe that while technology can support precision and efficiency, it can never replace the intuition, care, and sensibility of a skilled artisan.  

Most of our products require a human touch, whether in upholstery, finishing, or detailing. Take for example the Mangiafuoco coffee table, which has a copper base, and an enameled surface that is placed in the oven at really high temperatures. It is a mastery from Venice that was getting lost in time. And so we’re combining modern technology and modern products on one side, but always juxtaposing them with very old and maybe lost techniques to create and keep the soul of the company alive.  

Caterina, you’ve recently stepped into the role of Moroso’s area manager for APAC. As part of the third generation, how do you see Moroso’s legacy adapting to the future?  

Caterina: I have a very important and strategic role, but I’m still learning. There’s so much information and so much culture to bring home with me after all these trips around Asia. I’ve also studied in Guangzhou as part of a multi-institution programme while doing my Masters, which really opened my mind to an international perspective and how to work well with others from different cultures.  

There are four of us in the third generation within the business, all in very strategic positions such as digital marketing, business control, sales and customer care, and all of us have a very strong identity. I think working together in these critical roles will help us bring the company forward. One of the key aspects will be to always think outside the box – not just follow industry trends, but break out of them and present something different.  

You’ve also previously worked in fashion and brand management. What insights from that field do you think you bring into your role at Moroso?

Caterina: While I don’t have an artistic background, I’ve always learned how to manage it, and how to not squash creativity or slow it down. I think learning how to create a business around creative individuals and creative processes is quite a challenge. I have done that in the fashion and eyewear industry with Luxottica, and now in the design industry. I think those skills are easily transferable.  

From talking to both of you, it’s clear your family is close. What is it like having so many of you working in the business together?

Caterina: My sister and I lived at home until we were 16. Then we moved away for school but still, every Sunday at lunch, the entire family came together for a meal. We’re talking 25 people, every Sunday.   Now, every Friday at lunch, all four of us younger ones, and sometimes my Dad and my aunt Patrizia, would come together for family lunches where we talk, not about business issues, but about the human side of the business, like how the team is working together. And I have to say it’s the best lunch of the week. [laughs]  

Visit the new Moroso concept space at XTRA, 6 Raffles Boulevard #02-48 Marina Square, Singapore 039594

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