Bieffeplast - Joe Colombo - Cupboard - Boby - Plastic

Boby Trolley designed by Joe Colombo for Bieffeplast
Probably produced in the early production stage around 1970-1975

• Bieffeplast of Padua produced the Boby from 1970 until 1999 (B-Line took over after that) (GQ).
• The "PATENTED" moulding is a strong indicator of an early production piece — this mark typically appears on units made shortly after the design's 1969/1970 launch, when the patent notice was still part of the mould (V&A).
The most likely production date is circa 1970–1975; an early first-generation Bieffeplast example.

The trolley has several imperfections. At a few places the plastic has broken off and is missing.

Joe Colombo (1930–1971), born Cesare Colombo in Milan, was an Italian painter turned designer and one of the most radical futurists of 1960s Italian design. After a career change in his early thirties, he devoted himself to imagining furniture and living systems "for the year 2000" — modular, plastic, machine-like pieces that defined the Space Age aesthetic. In barely a decade he created an astonishing catalogue of work, including the Elda armchair, the Universale stacking chair for Kartell, and the Additional Living System, before dying of a heart attack at just 41.
His work for Bieffeplast is epitomised by the Boby trolley (1969–70): a moulded ABS storage cart on wheels with rotating drawers and compartments on all sides. Originally intended for the drawing office, it became a design classic used in studios, kitchens, and bathrooms, won a prize at SMAU in 1971, and is held in the permanent collections of MoMA and the Milan Triennale. Bieffeplast produced it until 1999, after which B-Line took over — keeping it in continuous production for over fifty years. .