Channel 4’s Big Brother brought designer chairs to the forefront and gave a platform each year for selected designers to showcase their work. The first Diary Room chair, by Danish architect and designer Arne Jacobsen, sold at a charity auction for just over £30,000 back in 2000, before the programme had even reached its peak, and one of the pivotal moments of the launch show each year was the reveal of that year’s new design.

The craze for the BB chair led to the house being a showroom for a whole host of funky furniture in bold and bright colours and designs, and ten years on, this trend is spilling out more and more into the homes of regular folks. Businesses, too, are choosing designer chairs and other contemporary furniture as statement pieces for their offices or waiting areas in order to make a lasting impression on their clients. A vibrant designer look doesn’t just have a positive affect on the clients, however. Employees will also be inspired by working in a modern and unique environment. Vivid colours and funky furniture create a workspace where people want to be and will help to increase productivity, particularly for workers who spend all day sitting at their desks.

Carefully chosen modern chairs and other office furniture pieces combine with a company’s logo and colour design to produce a strong brand image also. For homes too, a modern look like this can be a way to really put your personality across in a unique and fun manner. And for some truly inspirational designs, why not check out the online exhibition by London’s Design Museum and explore ‘A Century of Chairs’ to see how this everyday piece of furniture has evolved into the fantastic ergonomic creations which can be found today.