Meet Henry Jara | Owner of Casara Modern

We had the good fortune of connecting with Henry Jara and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Henry, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
When it came to starting my own business, there were many reasons that drew me into it. I had worked retail management for a majority of my life, and I always wanted to be able to work for myself. My daughter started collecting mid century modern furniture at estate sales and I discovered through her, a love and passion for not just the mid century style, but for a community of people that appreciate this period of design. I started hunting down the furniture and refinishing it to resell to collectors at first. Eventually the original pieces became harder and harder to find. I then decided to start manufacturing quality pieces at a time where fast furniture flooded the markets. So I had this opportunity to work for myself, provide a quality product, and fully immerse myself in this community of mid century design that I grew to love. I never looked back.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We are a local business based in Huntington Beach, CA. We take pride in our craftsmanship and it is important to us to provide a long-lasting product that you would be proud to own. We are providing furniture that represents the mid century modern movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Other than the sleek lines and beautiful designs of the time, another great thing about mid century modern pieces is that they were built to last. They may need a little external refreshing, but original pieces from the 50s are still going strong today. It’s our mission to provide that same strong quality that stands the test of time. While we started out as a local dealer in Southern California, we now even ship our furniture all over the country. What started as a passion project on the weekends with my kids has slowly evolved over time into a full-blown staple in the mid century modern market. We started out selling furniture at flea markets and now have come so far that we were able to furnish for a major TV production.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I grew up here in Huntington Beach, moved around Orange County throughout my life, but ultimately moved back and live here again because the beach was always home. If I was going to show a friend around town, we would definitely spend a day at the beach surfing. Surfing was my first love and we are still going strong. Dinner would be at the Black Trumpet Bistro or Capone’s Italian Cucina, which funnily enough, share the same owner! He obviously has a fan in me. Another fun outing would be to book a room at the Pasea Hotel & Spa on PCH on a night where you can catch a rooftop concert from your balcony with an awesome sunset in the background. If there is a nice swell, we could go to the Wedge in Newport Beach and drop our jaws at the 30 foot waves breaking on the sand. One day could be spent grabbing breakfast at Mama’s on 39 before going on a tour in a mid century modern home in Orange, designed by the renowned Joseph Eichler. On a nice warm summer day, I would also love to ride bikes down the boardwalk along the beach and catch bands playing at the various restaurants along the boardwalk to end the weekend.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
For us it all boils down to family. My family supported my passion and the risk that it took to get things off the ground. My kids even helped me since they were teenagers. My main goal in starting my own business was, of course, to support my family. Now that all my children are adults, my son Tyler helps me run Casara Modern and will be taking over the business some day. In truth, this business is my legacy and I want to pass it down to my family. I even name most of my designs after my children and now my grandchildren as well. They have been and always will be a part of Casara Modern.

Website: https://www.casaramodern.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/casaramodern/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/casaramodern

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/casara-modern-huntington-beach