Furniture Village chief presented Lifetime Achievement Award

Peter Harrison, chief executive of retailer Furniture Village, has been awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by The Furniture Makers’ Company, the City of London livery company and charity for the furnishing industry, recognising his 50-year career.

The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented annually to a visionary leader who has devoted their life to the furtherment of the trade and left an indelible mark on the industry.

Peter started his career in 1965 at the age of 19 when he got his first job as a management trainee at UDS, which later became Allders Department Stores.

Peter spent 20 years at Allders, rising to become a main board director.  He moved on to join the board of the Gillows Group in the mid-1980s where he met David Imrie, and together they co-founded Furniture Village, opening their first store in Abingdon, Oxfordshire in 1989.

Today Furniture Village has 54 stores and a strong online presence that is still growing. It is currently the largest independent furniture retailer in the UK with an annual order intake of circa £500M (including VAT) in the past year.

Furthermore, Peter is a massive supporter of the British furniture manufacturing industry and a keen supporter of British furniture designers.

The ceremony took place on Monday 9 May 2022 at the Mansion House in the City of London during the commemorative dinner of the newly installed Master of The Furniture Makers’ Company, Tony Attard OBE DL, which was attended by around 170 people.

Peter was joined at the celebration by friends, family and colleagues, including his son Charlie Harrison, who is the commercial director at Furniture Village.

Commenting on receiving the award, Peter said: “I am both thrilled and honoured to receive such an acclamation from The Furniture Makers’ Company for purely doing a job I enjoy, alongside people I admire, in an industry I love!”

Tony Attard OBE DL, Master of The Furniture Makers’ Company, said: “We are delighted to be able to present this evening a Lifetime Achievement Award to Peter Harrison to honour his outstanding contribution to the furnishing industry by establishing Furniture Village, the largest independent furniture retailer in the UK, which remains a family firm. As a corporate member of The Furniture Makers’ Company, Peter has long been a generous supporter of the Company, besides other sporting and medical foundations.”