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| More than 100 years ago, in a German town called Marlow near the Ostsee, the Erdbeer family made saddles and harnesses by hand for the townspeople's horses and carriages. Each time the family grew by another generation, they named othe oldest son Ludwig and passed him the skills and knowledge of their family trade. By the third generation, the Erdbeers began to offer upholstery services for the elaborate carriages that were a major mode of transportation for the well-to-do citizens of Marlow. The family also learned to design the draperies inside the carriages that afforded people their privacy as they traveled. |
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| By the 1950s, the horses and carriages had been replaced by cars, but the Erdbeer family still made their living by specializing in draperies and upholstery. When he completed his apprenticeship, a young Ludwig Erdbeer, left home at age 17 with a couple suitcases and plans to go to the US to work for one year. Forty-seven years later, Ludwig Erdbeer is celebrating the success he has experienced from bringing his family's knowledge and traditions to America. Ludwig's family members who now work at Ludwig Interiors are the sixth generation of Erdbeers in the same business. For nearly 20 of the 40 years, the Lincoln Square neighborhood has hosted Ludwig's business at the corner of Lincoln and Eastwood. He has been in the neighborhood so long and has done so much for the community, the city put up an honorary street sign in his name on the same stretch of Lincoln Avenue as his shop. |
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| Today, instead of carriage windows, you'll find the storefront windows of Ludwig Interiors trimmed with draperies and window shades that are examples of the Erdbeer family trade. Inside the door is a workshop full of luxurious materials and character—huge bolts of every conceivable kind of fabric fill the room from floor to ceiling, along with the sounds of hammering as an employee completes an antique chair restoration. Tools in the shop are both modern and traditional, automated and historic. A leather cutter that Ludwig's grandfather once used to make saddles hangs on the office wall as a reminder of the family's history. An old fashioned sewing machine sits in the center of the workshop, while a seven foot marlin that Ludwig caught on a trip to Mexico overlooks the scene from its mount on the wall. Around the corner, the showroom displays examples of just a few of the designs the Erdbeers can create for their clients' homes or businesses. |
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 Ludwig's shop grew from humble beginnings into a highly respected business known throughout the interior design field. After settling in Chicago, Ludwig worked a number of jobs, including as a foreman and fabric cutter for a local furniture company. By 1963, he had saved up enough money so that he could go into the upholstery business for himself. His first shop was a small store on Damen and Sunnyside. Eventually, he was able to expand and rented space in a warehouse at 1304 South Indiana. In those days, much of the work Ludwig did involved reupholstering. But as time went on, the business evolved into a trusted partner and supplier to interior designers, architects and customers with the inspiration to decorate their own homes. He gradually broadened his services to include custom installations ranging from elaborate window treatments to systems of upholstered walls. Known for his exceptional craftsmanship, Ludwig's reputation has involved him in projects for interiors at major corporate headquarters and for the homes of high-profile executives, celebrities and sports stars. In the early 1970s, Ludwig helped create the interiors at the McDonald's corporate office in Oakbrook, including special upholstered walls for managing sound in an open environment and a space-aged "think tank" room that the corporation used as a setting to inspire brainstorming sessions. |
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| All the while, the shop remained a family business to its core. Shortly after he opened the shop, Ludwig married his fiancee Erika, whom he met dancing at Weber Hall. They later had a daughter Heidi, and a son, Cornel, both of whom grew up helping their dad in the shop. Both still work at Ludwig Interiors today. Heidi has been involved in the accounting, management and business operations since 1994, and Cornel is actively involved with all aspects of the business, including design. "I was born and raised in this shop," recalls Cornel. "This is the only place I've ever worked." Before taking on a full time position, Cornel studied interior design at Harrington to deepen his expertise. "In this business, It's important to always be on the same page as the builders," says Cornel. "You need to know how to read blueprints and understand how to work with architects and designers." The shop's attention to detail and diligence is one of the reasons why a number of interior design firms have established trusted relationships with the family. Ludwig also encouraged Cornel to learn every aspect of the business first hand. "My dad believes that, if you're going to run a business, you need to know how to operate everything," says Cornel. There's no doubt that Cornel has inherited his father's passion for design, either. "I love it," says Cornel, "I'm able to work with both my mind and my hands." |
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 The blend of traditional craftsmanship and modern design sensibilities at Ludwig Interiors means that they can offer services that their competitors aren't able to. Because Ludwig learned his trade according to old world traditions, he is well versed in certain labor intensive techniques that few people in this day and age know how to do. These skills, such as double stuffing and hand stitching, allow him to complete true antique furniture restoration for customers who want to return their piece to its original condition. One client who wanted to restore a priceless leather coffee table couldn't find craftsmen anywhere in the US who had the skills to work on it. He was planning to fly in a team of craftspeople from Italy to his home, just so that they could preserve the table that had been in his family for generations. But before he could bring in the team, Ludwig offered to work on it personally. When each painstaking detail had been completed, the table was a true work of art. Although they are highly capable of working with antiques, the Erdbeer family's skills extend beyond the traditional to new and modern design. For example, Cornel and Ludwig are currently working on drapery designs for a nightclub in Las Vegas and they also contribute to the design of professional grade home theater systems. One popular feature they sometimes install in a home theater is fiber optic draperies, which sparkle and twinkle like starlight when the lights go down. |
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| In addition to all the time they devote to their business, the Erdbeer family gives generously to their neighborhood to support community and cultural activities. Both Ludwig and Cornel share an interest in music—Cornel plays trumpet in the historic drum and bugle band, R.V. Fanfaren, while Ludwig sings in the male chorus, Rheinischer Gesang Verein. R.V. Fanfaren plays each year for the German Day parade in Chicago and recently traveled to perform at the German Mardi Gras in Mainz. Ludwig's chorus is planning a tour of Germany this summer, when he has made arrangements to offer a performance in the historic city hall of the Erdbeer family hometown. An avid boater from the time he was a child, Ludwig is also a leader of the boating community in Chicago. He is one of the founders of a Boater's PAC, which works with local and national leaders to protect the rights of boaters and everyone who enjoys the city's lakefront. "What boating people do for the community, most people don't know," says Ludwig. "We're quiet people. We don't toot our own horns," he smiles. For years, Ludwig has given back to the community by organizing boaters' charity events. He first worked with the American Lung Association to arrange boat rides and parties for asthmatic children. Currently, he's involved with the Chicago Park District and the Welles Park Therapeutic Program for disabled children. He and his peers host a boat parade that invites the children as passengers of honor. "We have children on the boats, most of whom have never seen the shoreline up close or the panoramic view of the city you can only see from a boat," says Ludwig. "The glow you see in their faces—it makes you feel good. We always have more boaters volunteering than we even need." |
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 Under the direction of its founder, Ludwig Interiors has developed into a full service design company that does both commercial and residential work—even work on boats. They still do reupholstering, although it's become a smaller portion of their business than it was initially. You'll find options for draperies of all conceivable fabrics and shapes you probably never imagined could exist—from drapery rods and finials, to cornices and motorized drapery systems. If you have a simple blind, shade or sunshade in mind, Ludwig will take care of that for you too. They will do any type of custom work, whether it's a large-scale project or a simple update you'd like to make to your home. "What we do is not like a product that sits on a shelf," says Cornel. "It's much more custom than that." The family's years of relationships with high quality suppliers allow them a network of resources to create remarkable interiors. Some of the suppliers they work with include Ado and Robert Allen for draperies, Kirsch and Blome for hardware, and Hunter Douglass for blinds and shades. Many of the motorized treatments that they specialize in come from Somfy and Silent Gliss, while they also provide solar shades from Castec. Ludwig's relationships with independent suppliers allow him access to the components needed to create truly custom work. |
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| Ludwig Interiors offers unique and out of the ordinary designs and materials to customers, unlike most big home improvement stores that stock only off-the-shelf window solutions. If the one-size-fits all options at the big stores don't fit your windows, then you're out of luck. But Ludwig Interiors can create a design that not only fits your windows, it will suit your tastes. They are experts at handling any kind of scenario: if you know exactly what you want, if you don't have any idea or if you work with a particular designer or architect. Whatever you decide, the Erdbeer family is destined to create something that will be beautiful for years to come. "The secret to our success is quality work," says Ludwig. "The work speaks for itself." |
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Ludwig Interiors
4634 North Lincoln Avenue
Chicago, IL 60625
773.989.1005
Hours:
Monday through Friday 9am-5pm
Saturday 10am-3pm
Also by appointment |
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