For the past 15 years, Margaret Sevadjian has designed and manufactured a variety of contract furnishings from her small specialty firm, Charles Alan Inc., based in Fort Worth.
Pull up a chair, lounge piece or bar stool at Landry’s Restaurant, Cook Children’s Medical Center, American Airlines Center, Amon G. Carter Stadium, Hyatt Regency Dallas or Cowboys Stadium – just to name a few notable clients – and chances are that piece of furniture was made in Sevadjian’s 40,000-square-foot manufacturing facility on Stanley Avenue on the city’s south side.
“We design for a range of different industries but are primarily known for designing and manufacturing furniture for hospitality, health care and high-end hotels,” said Sevadjian, company founder, CEO and president. “We now offer more than 300 designs – everything from chairs and sofas to dining tables, booths and banquettes, and bar stools. We’re also the only licensed company in the United States in health care to use patented technology for seating. We’ve had the opportunity to work on some of the most major projects all over the world.”
Sevadjian is now aiming her sights on a new product line.
Inventor and survivalist John Adrian of Hercules Research Corp. in Spokane, Wash., recently contracted with Charles Alan to custom- make his CouchBunkers. Like his BedBunkers and ConsoleBunkers, the CouchBunkers are commercial grade couches equipped with a carefully designed, tamper-proof hidden safe. The modular safe, made from roll-formed 14-gauge steel with a 10-gauge steel door, is 78 inches long, 29.5 inches wide and 14 inches deep – about the same size as a twin or half of a queen BedBunker – and securely stores firearms as well as gold, silver and other valuables. Built to last a lifetime, the couch and safe can weigh 1,000 pounds, depending on the fabric and style.
Sevadjian said that once word got out that Charles Alan was making the CouchBunkers, interest started to boom among gun owners and collectors as well as with ranchers and owners of lake houses, cabins and residential homes.
“I’ve had a lot of people ask me about this once they heard we were doing this. There’s a lot of interest in them,” she said. “You don’t want people to know you’ve got a safe under your sofa. And you don’t, because of the way it’s designed. You don’t even see the safe. I think in this area this is a good alternative to a regular gun safe or wall safe.”