Hey There,

Long time and we are back with a fun one :)

In 2016, Ami visited Maison & Objet in Paris for the first time. She came back completely mesmerised. Not by any one brand or product in particular, but by the sheer scale  and production value of it all. Hall after hall of people who cared deeply about how we live, decorate, gather and make homes feel personal.

And somewhere during those few days, a small thought appeared: something you fear to say out loud because it feels too ambitious. Maybe one day we'll show here too. Not as another Indian exporter selling products to the world. But as part of a newer generation of Indian brands with a point of view.  The thought was quietly filed away. As these things often are. Then life happened and the thought disappeared into the background noise of building a business.

Until a few months ago. Every year, we spend time discussing what comes next for The Wishing Chair. Not in the grand five-year-plan sense of the word. More in the "what are we curious about?" sense. And, that 2016 memory resurfaced.  What if we started with Maison & Objet?  Not because we had a master plan. But because it felt like a good place to learn. Of course, this was immediately followed by a very long list of reasons why this was probably a terrible idea. Would they even accept us? Could we afford it? Could we pull it off? What if we spent a small fortune and discovered that nobody cared?

One of the unexpected joys of being in your forties is that self-doubt still shows up, but it no longer gets to drive the car. You learn that confidence is not the absence of uncertainty. It's the willingness to proceed despite it. So we spent the next few months tracking down organisers, putting together brand decks, submitting presentations, designing booth concepts and answering second and third rounds of questions.

A few weeks ago, we got the news. We're in. (Which, we're told, is not a small thing. The selection process is fairly rigorous and not everyone who applies gets accepted.) This September, we'll be exhibiting at Maison & Objet in Paris. We've been allocated a grand total of 9 square metres. Apparently that's what first-time participants get. We've also discovered there are approximately 163 pages of rules governing everything from booth construction to lighting, signage and flooring.

So here we are. Equal parts excited and intimidated.

After Delights of Distraction quietly faded away, we've been a bit absent from your inboxes. Not intentionally. We just never felt we had anything worth interrupting your day for. This feels different, like the start of a new chapter.  And perhaps a good excuse to document what it looks like when two people who should probably know better decide to become beginners again.

Over the next few months, we'll share the preparations, the wins, the inevitable mishaps and everything we're learning along the way.

If nothing else, it should make for a good story.

Warmly,

Viv & Ami

P.S. We've also been reluctantly participating in an Instagram series called The Test of Time, where our younger team members are attempting to transform two women who did not grow up in front of a camera into social media pros. The results have been mixed, but entertaining. Have a look @vivnami