Hong Kong in the 1960’s was where Lionel Levin first began his love affair with the East. A notable Interior Designer, Lionel’s obsession with things of scale and uniqueness was indulged through trips to exotic and ancient destinations, in search of large and extraordinary pieces.
Decades later, married to Louella and still travelling to exotic destinations, the Levins took a leap of faith and filled a 20-foot container with instinctively selected ‘Indian Allsorts’ and shipped their finds back to South Africa to test the market. Encouraged by the spontaneous response, Trade Roots was established.However, dealing with India proved difficult and relatively unexplored China beckoned – and stole their hearts.
Lionel and Louella travel to China several times a year, where their relationship with dealers who’ve come to know the Trade Roots style, source the pieces that Lionel and Louella’s clients seek out at Trade Roots.
Reaching out to Cape Town clients, Trade Roots’ extended the family run business to the historic ‘De Waterkant’ district where Trade Roots is run by Cathi Evans.