Our Goal
Purling London exists to celebrate art and playfulness. Our critically acclaimed, contemporary Chess, Backgammon and Checkers contrast traditional, by-hand-manufacturing against vivid colour, abstract art and theatrical illumination. Purling London’s unique board games, silver-gilded Playing Cards and brand new tungsten Darts are classic with a British twist.
“Our goal is to revitalise time-honoured games, mixing established forms with contemporary art and design influences. We aim to create new playful experiences, fresh family interactions, and customer surprise and delight! We aspire to bring back chess, darts and classic games as fashionable and innovative interior design accessories and gifts; embodying precision, history and luxury.” Simon Purkis, Founder
Our Story
Purling London was established in 2012 by Simon Purkis:
“I was playing chess on a beach against an old school friend of mine. As the sun set over the sea, it became more and more difficult to differentiate between the chess pieces. This gave me the idea of an illuminated chess board. I questioned why so many Staunton chess sets are brown-varnished wood – it seemed a wonderful opportunity to re-vamp the iconic design and introduce lacquered and one-off artist painted pieces to compliment modern interior designs.
We applied the same philosophy of traditional forms and contemporary colour to Playing Cards, Backgammon, Checkers, Darts and more.
Purling London now supplies a wide range of classic games to many international luxury stores and well-known interior designers. We were selected by Europe’s largest design show, Maison & Objet Paris as a ‘Future Trend’ in September 2016. The World Chess Hall of Fame, St. Louis USA exhibited our Art Chess sets in an influential art exhibition in 2016. We have collaborated with 30 contemporary artists including Sophie Matisse, Thierry Noir and Inkie on bespoke games and regularly ship to all corners of the world.
I hope you enjoy our playful products!” Simon Purkis, Founder
