Shift online accelerates in furniture retail

While online sales of furniture and home décor have been rising steadily over the years, this is a vertical where store retailers have long argued the in-store experience still excels because purchases are research and advice-intensive.

Nevertheless, the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated the shift online and shown the strategic importance of a curated online presence and an effective omnichannel strategy for retailers even if they remain firmly wedded to the physical stores.

Ikea, for example,  offers a very distinct customer experience that is inextricably linked to its vast network of over-sized stores. But many of its stores had to close during the pandemic, and so Ikea, along with other retailers in this sector has had to rapidly expand its digital capabilities,  turning part of its existing big-box stores into fulfilment centers for online shopping, for example.

Research firm Statista predicts  $294 billion in online furniture sales by 2022,  so retailers  cannot afford to miss out on the opportunity to integrate sales opportunities across channels.

More specifically, retailers have  improved their in-store experience with personalization, visualization, and faster checkout capabilities as well as the ability to capitalize on any online activities which the customer may have engaged in previously.

Meanwhile, the most sucessful retailers have also improved their eCommerce capabilities to include better information and visualization techniques by combining strong merchandise management capabilities with webrooming and augmented reality applications, as well as fast and flexible payment and fulfillment options.

But how do retailers get all the pieces in the omnichannel puzzle to fit together seamlessly for the customer?

👉🏼To find out more about how Openbravo helps retailers in the furniture and home décor sectors, watch our on-demand webinar, “How Openbravo Helps Furniture and Home Décor Retailers Play to their Strengths” or take a Product Tour today.