The global furniture market is growing at an annual rate of 5.2%: valued at around $331.21 billion in 2017, it is expected to reach $472.30 billion by 2024.
This incredibly attractive sector is undergoing a revolution, one based on meeting a new expectation: squeezing the time from click to sit. Evolutions in technology, a more globalized world, and changing lifestyles have produced consumers that aren’t willing to wait—and a bevy of new players offering fast delivery are making sure they don’t have to.
Amazon’s entry into the upholstered furniture market in 2017 solidified the growing expectation that next-day delivery should not be exclusive to books and fashion. And all the way back in May 2011 the world’s biggest e-commerce site, Taobao, got serious about their online furniture sales strategy. Headquartered in Hangzhou and owned by the Alibaba Group, the Chinese online shopping website, opened a five-story 25,000-square-meter Furniture Showroom in Beijing, dubbed Taobao Mall iFengChao to complement their online stores. Suffice it to say, it’s now normal for consumers to buy an armchair online and expect to be comfortably seated in it, in their living room, within the week.
This e-guide will explore the major forces having a significant impact on customer delivery expectations for the upholstered furniture market. Yes, consumer connectedness leads players to compete on price and customization, but above all, consumer expectations of fast delivery are paving the way for new speed-driven business models. We will look at how e-commerce and new ways of living and working have changed consumer mindsets, driving demand for increasingly fast furniture production.