A majlis sofa for Geneva is often planned as a formal reception set: a U-shape in velvet with arm bolsters between the seats, raised to sofa height on an upholstered base. Sofhu, the manufacturer, makes it in Türkiye to the plan of the room, for private homes, missions and hospitality venues, and ships it free. Ask about Swiss import charges before ordering.
- Suited layout
- Formal U-shape for receiving guests
- Suited to
- Households, missions, hospitality venues
- Seat level
- Raised majlis; a low floor sofa is also made
- Foam
- 32 kg/m³, no springs
- Made in
- Türkiye, by Sofhu
- Shipping
- Free; ask about Swiss import charges
On this page
In Geneva the majlis is less often a family corner and more often a room for receiving. A delegation is expected, relatives arrive from the Gulf for the summer, a host wants to offer coffee the way it is offered at home. The seating has to be correct: a proper circle, every guest with a place and an armrest, the fabric fit for a formal visit. That is the kind of majlis sofa this page is about.
Why Geneva asks for a formal majlis
Geneva’s Arab presence is long-standing and tied to the United Nations, the diplomatic missions and private banking. Each summer brings Gulf visitors to the lakefront.
So the likely buyers are Gulf households with a home here, missions that host, and hotels and lounges that serve those guests. In the Gulf the majlis is the room where visitors are received, and the tradition is described on the page about the Emirati and Dubai jalsa. A family that keeps such a room at home will want the same in Geneva.
What makes a set formal
Three things separate a reception majlis from an everyday floor sofa.
- The layout is a U or a full perimeter. Guests face each other and the host can see everyone. The hero image on this page shows a U from above, with armrests dividing the back row into places.
- Each guest has an armrest. Bolsters or tray-top armrests between seats give a place to lean and somewhere to put a cup.
- The fabric is velvet, with metallic detail. Sofhu describes its velvet as durable and easy to clean. Gold piping, banding or pierced gold panels do the rest.
Black with gold is the classic formal pairing, and ideas for it are collected in black and gold majlis ideas. Cream with gold, as in the room above, is lighter and suits a smaller salon.
Raised majlis or floor sofa
Sofhu makes both. The Arabic floor sofa is the low form: a seat mattress near the floor with loose back cushions. The Arabic majlis is raised to sofa height on a solid upholstered base, with fixed backs and arm bolsters. It usually suits official rooms better, where some guests will be in suits or uniforms and may not wish to sit low. Every photo on this page shows the raised kind.
The navy module above stands on a gold fretwork base with matching tray armrests. Majlis units like it line a wall the way a floor sofa does, at a height closer to a chair.
A different kind of raised seating has a carved wooden frame.
The carved dark-wood set with hexagonal tables is the wooden-frame kind and suits a library or a panelled room. Whatever the base, the cushions are filled with 32 kg/m³ foam, and denser foam generally keeps its shape longer; the covers unzip for cleaning.
Salon marocain, canapé arabe: the French words
Geneva is French-speaking, and many buyers search in French. A canapé arabe or canapé oriental is the general term and covers everything on this page; the French guide is canapé oriental et canapé arabe.
A salon marocain is something more specific. The Moroccan sedari is a banquette at bench height on a wooden frame, arranged wall to wall around a central table. It is not floor seating. Sofhu’s raised sets are the closest match, and the differences are explained on the Moroccan sedari page and, in French, on the salon marocain page.
Missions, offices and venues
A reception room in an office follows the same rules as one at home, with more attention to circulation and to where the principal guest sits. The guide to the office majlis for companies and embassies covers seating order and layout. Hotels and lounges can start with Sofhu’s page on the Arabic majlis for hotels.
Ordering from Geneva
Sofhu has no premises in Geneva. It builds each set to order in Türkiye and ships it free to the address you give. Because Switzerland is outside the EU, import duty or tax may apply; the position is set out on the page for the Arabic majlis in Switzerland, and you can ask Sofhu before you commit.
Send the plan of the room and your requirements through get a quote by measurement or on WhatsApp. Buyers in German-speaking Switzerland can read the page on a majlis sofa in Zurich.
