Furniture & deco. What the ‘connected’ generation wants

To win digitally-connected customers, retailers continue to adapt. If traditional companies have significantly changed their strategies, some new players like Casper, Wayfair and Made.com operate with completely different models.

How can such different firms compete in a similar market?

“I’ve already bought chairs, tables, rugs and mirrors online”, said Matthew, an Engineer (aged 40), a dad of 3 children in Boston. “However, I would never buy a sofa I didn’t sit on or be able to touch. Then again, returning a chair or sofa would be painful. You have to use a service lift. It’s not easy to manage”. Historically, the domestic furnishings and equipment sector has been slower than other verticals in embracing an omni-channel approach. Stores are based in suburbs with bulky items which are expensive to stock. Delivery is expensive. Customers are reluctant to buy big ticket products without physically testing items. For the Ikea Group, (as the world’s largest furniture retailer with annual of sales €38.8 billion in the last fiscal year),…