The distance between Belgium and Bangkok is more than just physical. For Pieter Compernol, it’s a journey that inspired a new life and a table-obsessed business built on an imaginary personality – Nicky Lobo meets P.Tendercool.

Pieter Compernol is a Belgian designer and antiques dealer. His wife, Stephanie Grusenmeyer, is a Belgian architect. So how did they come to be living and working in Bangkok?

“Stephanie and I always wanted to live in the East at some point in our lives,” Pieter tells us. “We had been travelling between Belgium and Thailand for 15 years. Bangkok is a great hub and fascinating, chaotic yet vibrant city – and never boring…”

Specialising in oriental art, the couple assisted interior designers by sourcing antiques for various projects and fairs across Antwerp, Brussels, Maastricht, Paris and London. Fatefully, says Pieter, “On a buying trip in Asia for an apartment in New York we stumbled upon fantastic antique wooden boards locally used as beds. This find turned out to become a whole new company: P.Tendercool…”

 

Read the full story on page 57 of Habitus issue 10, available on the iPhone and iPad here, or contact us to subscribe or buy back issues.

 

 

Photography by Ross Laurence

 

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