Ken Reinhard

Ken Reinhard is a Maryland-based industrial designer and principal of Ken Reinhard Design Associates, a studio dedicated to creating beautiful, elegant, and utilitarian products for the contract furniture industry. Over five decades, his award-winning designs have graced offices, hotels, residences, and healthcare facilities worldwide— work defined by simplicity, natural material beauty, and human-centered craft.

“From a very young age I loved to draw and make things,” says Ken Reinhard. “Whether working with wood, clay, or stained glass, I try to design and make things that will enhance people’s lives. Bringing something to life that did not exist before is very rewarding.” 

Every stage of Reinhard’s design process is done by hand—from initial sketches to refined scale models and final prototypes. “I like to feel directly how the materials are responding,” he explains. For Rhine, he moved from rough sketches to precise line drawings, then crafted paper models before creating wood scale models of the entire collection. He often builds full-size prototypes himself, allowing him to evaluate both aesthetics and comfort while enabling products to move directly into production.

Rhine marks a continuation of HBF’s creative partnership with Reinhard, whose collaboration with the brand dates back to its founding in 1981. He designed HBF’s first product line and debut catalog, setting the foundation for the company’s design language. “I have a very soft spot in my heart for HBF since I have been very much involved in its history, including being present at its birth. Hickory Business Furniture has come a long way since that first show, and I am very pleased and proud to be associated with it.”