Alexandria Brothers Invent New Kind Of Recliner

ALEXANDRIA, VA—Two brothers from Alexandria are debuting a new type of recliner, an invention that's been 43 years in the making. To celebrate the achievement in Scott and Mark Erb's hometown, Creative Classics Furniture will showcase the chair on an upcoming date.

Scott first thought of the idea of an "active seating" chair that could conform to the person using it, rather than the other way around, in 1975. The idea stayed with him as he graduated from Virginia Tech, moved to DC to work as an architect and became an independent design consultant in Alexandria. Scott began working on the design while his brother Mark, a retired FAA engineer, contributed his engineering expertise.

The brothers received a patent for their chair and displayed a prototype at the Alexandria Farmers Market to get feedback. Since they had the functionality down, their next step was proposing it to a furniture company.

Their chair found a home at American Leather, a furniture manufacturer. The company and industrial designer Jeff Webber spent four years perfecting the design and mechanism using the concept of the Erb brothers' design.

The chair, named The Comfort Air by American Leather, became available to retailers in 2018. The chair responds to a person's movement while maintaining support and firmness.

Alexandria's own Creative Classics Furniture was one of the first retailers to begin selling the recliner. Scott and Mark Erb will be on hand for Creative Classic Furniture's event Relaxandria: a Motion Furniture Sale Saturday, May 4 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Visitors can try out the chair and enter to win their own. American Leather representatives will also be available for questions.

Creative Classics Furniture is located at 906 King St, Alexandria, Va.