Partnerships are all important in the world of design, whether that is connecting with clients, staff or collaborating with other like-minded businesses in the same sphere. Extrapolating the idea of what a product can do and be, and developing its form and function, sees a business ready for the future.

As Australia’s leading producer of solid-engineered European oak flooring, Tongue & Groove has always raised the bar for exemplary products, but now, with a unique partnership with Established & Sons and Raw Edges, excitement is in the air.

With the new global partnership in place, Tongue & Groove will now manufacture and distribute all Established & Sons timber flooring collections worldwide.

“It’s been my vision for a long time to get on the global stage, and I feel like we’ve found the right partners to do it with,” says Richard Karsay, CEO and founder of Tongue & Groove. “That’s the key to any successful partnership – making sure all partners are not only aligned, but that they all add value.”

The partnership emerged from Co.Lab, Tongue & Groove’s pioneering initiative that paired precision engineering with the creativity of world-renowned designers. The second Co.Lab collection, Wall to Wall, a colourful reimagining of herringbone parquet flooring designed by Raw Edges and Established & Sons launched in 2025, brought the three parties together. Following the success of this collaboration, a long-term partnership evolved.

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“When I spoke to Richard for the first time, I could feel that energy – the hunger to do something outside of standard flooring,” says Casper Vissers, Managing Director of Established & Sons. “There is a synergy between the culture at Tongue & Groove and our culture.”

Each partner brings to the fore their distinct and complementary strengths. Australia’s own Tongue & Groove brings 15 years of manufacturing expertise, advanced Research & Development capabilities and a three-layer solid European oak construction that delivers unmatched stability and durability.

Established & Sons, founded in London in 2005, contributes two decades of design credibility and a global network of resellers and design-world relationships, while Raw Edges, the London-based design studio led by Shay Alkalay and Yael Mer renowned for its inventive approach to materials and form, provides the creative vision.

The inaugural collection from the partnership is a minimal, tile-like flooring system designed by Raw Edges which will launch at Salone del Mobiles in April, with more collections to follow.

“We really want to keep the Established & Sons DNA – the avant-garde design – but within a commercial reality,” says Vissers. “The products we are developing with Tongue & Groove and Raw Edges are special and unique, but they have a wide appeal globally.”

As a partner of The Interior Space category at the 2026 INDE.Awards, Tongue & Groove is at the vanguard of design, bringing to market outstanding products that enhance architecture, while also understanding the importance of supporting design and designers through the INDEs program.

Great partnerships can achieve so much, and we are proud that Tongue & Groove is a partner of the INDE.Awards. This innovative Australian company is breaking new ground, and we congratulate Tongue & Groove for its exciting new initiative with Established & Sons and Raw Edges which is certain to invigorate flooring design on the global stage.

Tongue & Groove
tongueandgroove.com.au

Photography
Adam O’Sullivan
Courtesy of Tongue & Groove