The online furniture sector is still small, says Breugelmans. “A giant like Ikea has also waited a very long time to open an online store. They only started in 2018. Now they are fully committed to it, but it is not always going smoothly.”
Nevertheless, the online furniture market is growing. “Many customers start their search for furniture on the internet and then go to a physical store to actually buy their new furniture. If you don’t have an online presence, the step to the competition is much smaller.”
The consumer expects the furniture store to have an online presence, but also expects online elements in the physical store. “You want to be able to see your new seat in your own environment and not just in a sterile retail space. The technology now also allows that, with virtual reality for example. Yet you don’t often see that in stores and for the time being it will only be limited to experiments.”
2023-06-14 17:37:00
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