The new digital trends in the furniture, home décor and DIY sector
The market for home-related products, which includes furniture, décor and and DIY, has undergone a major shift over the past 2 years.
This sector was one of the few to benefit from the pandemic, as consumers were forced to spend more time at home and many decided to renovate their living room or undertake DIY projects.
To quickly adapt to these new needs and the new behavioral patterns created by the pandemic, retailers have had to strengthen their online presence and offer new services, such as curbside pickup, to better serve consumers who were unwilling or unable to come into their stores.
Now this market is getting back on track and is projected to grow again over the next four years, reaching nearly $90 billion by 2025, in the case of the European furniture and décor market, which equates to an annual growth rate of 3%.
However, the market faces some challenges in the short term, such as the volatility of raw material prices and the expected squeeze on disposable income due to inflation, which is at levels not seen in 30 years.
Unified Commerce
Another challenge is that of unified commerce, which has experienced a significant boost due to the pandemic. Physical stores still offer an unrivalled value to the shopping experience, but digital channels are an integral part of the experience for many consumers, especially younger ones.
The shopping journey has changed a lot. It is now common for consumers to have done most of their research on the store’s own website or on social media and only go to the store to try the product they are interested in and make a final decision.
Another change is that buying today is much more impulsive. For example, millennials renew their furniture more frequently for aesthetic reasons, unlike their parents or grandparents who bought furniture for life.
In addition to their greater willingness to use e-commerce for shopping, the younger generations adapt easily to new technologies such as augmented reality or livestreaming. And they place a lot of importance on UGC (User Generated Content), on channels such as Pinterest or Instagram.
Although in-store shopping is still the preferred option, furniture has definitely entered the online shopping cart and is here to stay.
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