Cheap, Fast & Stylish: Could Greycork Be Bigger Than Ikea?

"Furniture" is a loaded word. Buying it means commitment and coordination: You have to want that sofa, and you need to be determined to get it into your space. It can get emotional. A new company out of Providence, RI, aims to change that.

Greycork offers a line of flat-pack furniture items that take four minutes to assemble — without tools. Their pieces are inspired by the work of iconic makers like George Nakashima and Charles and Ray Eames, but cost less than comparable pieces from Ikea. Great design at an affordable price sounds pretty stress free, right? That's the point.

"The real Holy Grail is when you can [provide] both," Greycork co-founder John Humphrey tells R29. "We're looking to create a new user experience for people looking to buy furniture that's beautifully made."

The company launched an Indiegogo campaign to take pre-orders for its Living Room Set this week, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. To get the 411 on this industry disruptor, we spoke with Humphrey about the his assembly-line inspiration, the brand's focus on simplicity, and how Airbnb fits into the Greycork experience.