This story originally appeared on the Gents Cafe Newsletter. You can subscribe here.
The ping of a notification is the modern thief of presence. It is just a sound, but it has the power to pull us away from the person sitting directly across from us, leaving behind half-finished conversations and missed connections. Fighting back against this digital drift requires a beautiful distraction.
Milou Oostvogel and Flore Rottinghuis found that distraction in the games of their youth, reimagining classic pastimes like backgammon and ludo as contemporary statement pieces. During our conversation, they revealed the highs and lows of this path, and how their competitive spirits fuel their creative fire.
In this Brand Talks interview, Milou and Flore, Co-Founders of House of Nobilique, talk about the power of analog board games and their vision for a more connected, offline future.
What’s your earliest memory of a board game?
We both grew up in households where board games were a constant presence, and for both of us, the game that stands out most is backgammon. It wasn’t necessarily a common game for children our age, but it was a staple for our parents, especially our fathers. Growing up in our community, board games were a way of life, but backgammon felt like something more intimate, tied specifically to our two families.
We remember those years, around 14 or 15, as a transitional time. It was the very beginning of the smartphone era, but we weren’t yet “sucked in.” After dinner, or while on holiday, the phones stayed away and the board games came out. Whether we were playing with family or hanging out with friends, playing together was the default. It’s a sense of connection that we feel is largely missing in today’s world.
We also have to admit that we are both incredibly competitive. When we play against each other now, it often turns into a playful “small fight”, with one of us inevitably demanding a rematch because we just have to win. That competitive spirit, combined with the desire to bring people back to “offline” life, is exactly why we founded House of Nobilique. We wanted to create games so beautifully designed that you’d never feel the need to hide them away after the game is over.
Can you take us back to the moment when the idea of building House of Nobilique first took shape — and what made you feel it was worth turning into something real?
The idea was born out of a shared frustration. We were hanging out with friends and realized that everyone was constantly on their phones. We were both working for large companies at the time, and we felt something was missing in our own lives. Our generation is perpetually online—checking emails, scrolling social media, replying to people who aren’t even in the room. Even when we tried to put the phones away, the moment a notification pinged, the spell was broken.
We started asking ourselves “How can we bring our friends back into the moment?” We thought back to our own childhoods, before the rise of Instagram and Facebook, when our best memories were formed around board games with family and friends. That’s when it clicked: games were the perfect vehicle to foster that offline connection.
Moreover, we also shared a deep passion for interior design. We were the type of friends who were constantly repainting our walls and rearranging our furniture. We didn’t want to create a game that you played and then tucked away in a dusty cupboard. We wanted to create a statement piece, a beautiful bit of furniture that almost incidentally happened to be a backgammon table.
We started sketching and drawing over and over again, refining the idea through endless conversations. Our enthusiasm grew so much that it became impossible to ignore; we simply had to turn those sketches into something real.
Your name brings together the ideas of ‘noble’ and ‘unique’. What do those two worlds represent for you, and how do they quietly shape the games you create?
It is about elevating the status of the board game. We create pieces that are meant to be displayed, not hidden away after you’ve used them. By combining “Noble” and “Unique,” we are signaling that these aren’t just toys, they are objects of character that invite people to play.
The “Unique” element comes from our approach to design and color. We use bold, vibrant palettes that make the table a focal point of the room. When a game is already out on the table, it acts as a visual invitation. It shifts the energy of a room; instead of just sitting and talking, people are drawn into the interaction of the game.
We wanted to create products that could be used for many, many years and that you never have to replace. To achieve that kind of longevity, you have to use the best possible materials and the highest level of craftsmanship. While that naturally positions us in a “luxury” or high-end category, the goal was first and foremost to create something lasting. If a piece is “noble” enough to stay on your table for decades, it’s the ultimate form of sustainable design… and luxury, if you wish.
We were both raised in hard-working families, so we were strongly motivated to pursue entrepreneurship through our commitment to sustainability rather than a love or inclination for luxury.
Could you walk us through your design process – from the initial concept or sketch to a finished game table that invites someone to sit and play?
It all starts from our desire to create genuine “statement pieces” for the living room, something that functions as high-end furniture while inviting you to play. It takes a long time to get the shape and fit exactly right, moving from sketches to our first physical samples.
In terms of concept, it all began with the Backgammon table, our first product, and then our vision started to expand. We realized people needed a portable version for holidays or office breaks, which led to the Backgammon Booklet. Then, personal needs sparked more ideas: for example, we developed a vibrant version of Ludo that children could play with, and after our boyfriends pointed out that when we’re with friends, we often play Poker, we designed a Poker set and a card box.
We started with about twenty ideas and narrowed them down to a core collection. Now, we aim to release a new game every six months. We’ve just launched a “Table Book” edition of our backgammon board—a large-scale version meant to live on a coffee table—and we are currently busy developing Rummikub, Dominoes, and Jenga.
Research is very hands-on for us. To first test the durability and sustainability of our leathers, we actually gave samples to kids to see how they stood up to real-world use. If they could survive a household with children, we knew they were good enough for our collection.
In terms of palette, we began with bold, signature colors like bright orange, green, and azure blue, and we’ve also listened to customers who wanted something more “quiet,” leading us to add earthier, brown-tinted tones for more minimalist interiors.
What’s a design or business decision you made early on that felt uncomfortable, but necessary for the integrity of the brand?
The most difficult decisions were the ones that required us to fully “jump in.” At first, we were balancing House of Nobilique with our previous jobs, but there came a point where that was no longer sustainable. Deciding to quit and make this company our primary focus was incredibly daunting, but absolutely necessary at the same time.
However, the real test of our integrity came shortly after. We had finally placed our first major bulk order, and all of our capital was tied up in it. When the products arrived at the warehouse, we were thrilled. We had spent a year testing leathers and dice, and we were ready to go. We sold our first two or three large tables almost immediately.
Then, two weeks later, a client called. She loved the table as a piece of furniture, but there was a technical flaw that made the game actually unplayable. It was a cold shower: the entire first shipment was faulty. We couldn’t sell a single table from that batch.
In that moment, we faced a choice: we could give up, or we could reinvest everything and start over. We chose to be completely transparent with our first customers, apologized, and promised to remake their tables as soon as possible. It was a massive financial blow and a huge mistake, but it taught us that if we weren’t willing to stand behind the quality of our products, even at a total loss, then the brand didn’t deserve to exist. Looking back now, it was the moment House of Nobilique truly became real.
If we weren’t willing to stand behind the quality of our products, even at a total loss, then the brand didn’t deserve to exist.
You often describe your objects as ‘meaningful’. In your view, what gives an object its meaning?
For us, it’s quite simple: meaning is found in the connection an object facilitates. A product becomes meaningful when it serves as a catalyst for shared moments. This is why we are so adamant that our games remain on the table rather than being tucked away in a drawer. When an object is visible and beautifully crafted, it is an implicit invitation to sit down, disconnect from the digital world, and engage with the person sitting across from you. To us, the “meaning” isn’t just in the leather or the design; it’s in the laughter, the competition, and the conversation that happens because the game was there to start it all.
In a world dominated by digital entertainment, you’ve chosen to champion analog play. In your view, how important is it to return to analog experiences, and how has House of Nobilique shaped your personal life in this regard?
Running a business in 2026 means we could easily be online all day, answering emails, posting on TikTok, and managing social media. But the moment we walk through our front doors and see our families, we want to be truly present. The only way to achieve that is to put the phone away and ignore the pings and rings. We’ve developed this collective anxiety that we must answer everything immediately, and it pulls us out of our lives.
Our generation, and certainly the one following us, is feeling the weight of this digital addiction. We often feel like we’re missing moments with the people right in front of us because someone is distracted by a screen. Whether it’s a friend, a family member, or even a neighbor, those real-world connections are what you actually remember later in life.
While we can’t—and shouldn’t—completely skip the digital world as it grows, that makes our “offline” time even more sacred. Our main goal with House of Nobilique is to reclaim those shared moments. When you find the time to be together, you should be fully there.
What is the most rewarding piece of feedback you’ve received from a customer that confirmed you were succeeding in your mission of fostering “connection”?
It’s a piece of feedback that came early on from a customer who initially bought a game just for the activity itself. They reached out to tell us that the “friendly competition” of the game had unexpectedly shifted the dynamic of their household: they were laughing more, talking more, and spending genuine time together. They told us it helped them step out of their “normal” daily life and have much deeper conversations. Hearing that was a confirmation that we were succeeding. It was exactly what we stood for: using the game as a bridge to return to the moment.
That feedback actually inspired us to start planning offline events where we can invite people to play together in person. We’ve been so busy building the foundation of the business over the last two years that we haven’t been able to host these yet, but it’s a major goal for 2026. Since event planning isn’t our core expertise, we are currently looking for the right partners or brands to collaborate with—people who share our values and want to use our boards to create beautiful, real-world experiences.
If you were to curate the atmosphere around a game night, what elements would you consider essential to make it truly memorable?
It’s simply about being surrounded by the people you truly want to be with. If you have great food, good drinks, and the right company, the conversation and the game will handle the rest. It isn’t much, but those are the essential elements that turn a simple evening into something that stays with you.
If you could host a game night with any three people from history around one of your tables, who would they be and why?
We had a lot of fun thinking about this one. We wanted to assemble a table that reflected the different facets of House of Nobilique, so the first guest would be Leonardo da Vinci. His mind was the pinnacle of creativity and invention: we would love to see how he interacted with our boards. Next, we chose Audrey Hepburn for her effortless elegance and charm. She represents the “Noble” aspect of our brand perfectly. Finally, although we know he isn’t a historical figure, we would have to invite Pharrell Williams. We wanted to bridge the gap between the old world and the new. Pharrell brings a specific type of modern creativity and positive energy that feels very “Nobilique.” It would be exactly the kind of cross-generational connection we hope our games facilitate!
Fast-forward 10 years: what impact do you hope House of Nobilique will have made on the way people gather and play?
We hope people will have a deeper realization that what truly matters are the moments we share. When you look back later in life, you won’t remember the hours spent scrolling or replying to emails; you will remember the laughter and the connections made across a table. We want House of Nobilique to be synonymous with that realization, and provide the tools that make those memories possible.
While our core will always be rooted in bringing people together through play, we are also expanding our vision. We recently introduced leather accessories, like our laptop cases, because we believe the “Nobilique” philosophy can extend to other parts of a well-curated life.
At the end of the day, the goal remains the same: everything we create must serve the idea of the “shared moment.” We want to build a brand that helps people prioritize the things they will actually cherish when they’re older.
