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Following small elegant houses from $ 52,000 available in the United States for the first time

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Call this an intercultural connection: Koto, a United Kingdom tiny Firm that merges the Scandinavian and Japanese design, now delivers to American customers.

Founded in 2017, Koto specializes in cabins, modular houses and small-scale sculptural architecture for residential and well-being spaces, including hospitals. Its Flatpack collection, Niwa, is a series of durable cabins which can be delivered in the form of panels and assembled on site.

“Our creations are like Ikea,” Koto co -founder Jonathan Little said, told Business Insider. “But instead of a box, they enter a container. They can be shipped worldwide and installed just about anywhere.”

Niwa is available in four sizes: small (67 square feet), medium (135 square feet), large (269 square feet) and extra large (403 square feet). Prices vary from $ 52,000 to $ 187,000, with additional costs for personalized features and upgrades. This is the first modular design of the brand available worldwide.

After a consultation, customers can buy a design license from Koto, at a price between $ 938 and $ 2,152. This cost is not included in the cabin price and is reimbursed after the purchase of the cabin. Although customers are responsible for securing permits and hiring of local entrepreneurs for the preparation and installation of the site, Koto offers support throughout the process. It can also be hired for the design of conceptual sites and landscaping.

Each Niwa unit is built in a European factory and shipped to the United States in the form of a panel. Depending on the location, it is delivered by truck, helicopter or boat.

Koto began to ship NIWA units – which can be used as a backyard, saunas, gymnasium, guest houses, airbnbs or something else – in the United States in April. He has already built units for Massachusetts customers and has other installations planned in Los Angeles.

Small houses – also called accessories housing units, or ADUS – are popular in the United States. Several states, including California, Vermont and New York, even Offer subsidies to help owners build them on their properties. For some, Adus provides more Affordable path to home ownership. For others, they offer a Opportunity for generation of income through rentals or a practical means of Create an additional living space When the area in square feet in a main house is limited.

“We see such a diverse requirement for our cabins, both from individuals to hotel owners,” said Little.

Take a look inside the three Niwa models available in the United States.

The design of Niwa cabins channels contemporary and contemporary minimalism.


A medium -sized koto cabin.

A medium -sized koto cabin.

Joanna Kossak

Each Niwa unit has essential characteristics, lighting and a heating and cooling system. Depending on the size of the unit ordered, a bathroom or a kitchenette can also be included.

Koto has designed the Niwa collection of small houses with nature in mind.


The outside of a small Koto house surrounded by trees and flowers.

A Koto cabin.

Edvinas Bruzas

Niwa units are designed to blend into their environment and support network life and out of network.

Koto builds his cabins using natural materials. The structure is built with wood of sustainable origin. Meanwhile, the outdoor coating is made from Shou Sugi Ban Timber – in treated wood with a traditional Japanese carmente method which makes it fire resistant.

Koto builds its cabins using natural materials and sustainable development. The main structure is made from wood collected in a responsible manner, while the exterior presents a Shou Sugi – charred wooden ban using a traditional Japanese method for durability and fire resistance.

The interior finishes vary depending on the type of unit; Studio cabins and units can generally sleep in oak or plywood, while the saunas are finished with a prayer, spruce or cedar.

Koto wants people who buy his houses reconnect outside.


A small Koto house in the woods.

Another view of the medium -sized Niwa cabin.

Trent Bell

Little told Business Insider that the design centered on the nature of Niwa was inspired by its own passage of Busy London in Norway, where the pace of life is slower, and the accent is more on the outside.

“London has a very fast life,” he said. “You work a lot of hours, then go home, rest and do the same thing the next day. Topping in Norway was the opposite. It was like, yes, doing your job, but be outside with your friends and family, be in the woods in nature.”

Each cabin can be installed in less than a month.


A medium -sized Niwa cabin.

Another angle of the medium -sized Niwa cabin.

Trent Bell

Niwa cabins generally take eight to 12 weeks for manufacturing, with shipments adding two to four additional weeks, depending on the destination.

Shipping costs vary depending on the location, but the company estimates that American deliveries cost about $ 9,000.

According to the Koto website, the installation of each unit can take four to 14 days.

The collection is available in four sizes: small, medium, large and extraarge.


A 3D rendering of 5 Niwa cabins.

The cabin on the far left is a large Niwa model, while the one on the far right is a sauna.

With the kind authorization of Koto

According to Koto, the small Niwa unit, which measures around 67 square feet, is ideal for use as a studio or sauna. The height of the ceiling varies from 5.9 feet to its lowest point to 11.8 feet at its peak.

The design license fees for this unit are around $ 940, and the basic price starts at $ 55,286.

The interior design of the cabins is simple but elegant.


The interior of a Niwa cabin

A kitchenette in a Niwa cabin.

Simon Bevan

The interior finishes of the Niwa units generally have wood and soft and earthy tones like brown and green vegetables.

This medium -sized Niwa cabin adapts comfortably up to six people when used as a sauna.


A medium -sized Niwa cabin.

Pasters can be installed in the cabins.

Edvinas Bruzas

A medium -sized Niwa measures approximately 135 square feet and can include a kitchenette, a small bathroom with shower and a bed. It is better suited to a sleep cabin, a studio or a sauna in one room.

According to Koto, the cabin makes a private office or an ideal garden studio. If it is used as a sauna, it includes higher and lower benches with seats at several levels for six to eight people. The sauna also includes a separate changing area.

The license fees are $ 1,603 and the basic price of the cabin starts at around $ 72,957.

Koto also sells furniture for his cabins.


The interiors of the Niwa cabins.

Koto furniture, as is its architecture, are minimalist.

Edvinas Bruzas

Customers can also buy furniture packs from Koto for an additional price. These packs, which vary from $ 7,119 to $ 9,379, include items such as lights, sofas, offices, chair tables and shelves.

The large Niwa has space for a full -size bathroom.


A 3D rendering of two Niwa cabins.

The cabin on the right is a large Niwa.

With the kind authorization of Koto

The large Niwa cabin offers enough space for a living room, a kitchen and a full bathroom with shower. Like the smallest models, it is ideal as an office or sleep cabin and can also be used as a gymnasium, according to Koto.

The unit measures approximately 269 square feet, has license fees of $ 2,156 and starts at $ 116,100.