Table of Contents
Issues in the Market
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- Key themes
- Definition
- Abbreviations
Future Opportunities
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- Harnessing the potential of the digitally dependent
- Selling to the swofties
- Selling the single lifestyle
- Bring Britain back to the table
- Love your dining room
Market in Brief
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- Recession dents demand for furniture
- Consumers are making furniture last longer
- TV use dominates the lounge
- Smaller homes with less space to dine
- Rise of general retailers
- A cautious outlook
Internal Market Environment
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- Key points
- Decrease in purchasing activity
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- Figure 1: Trends in ownership and purchasing of lounge/living room furniture, 2005-09
- Who are the ‘new buyers’?
- Trend to cheaper prices
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- Figure 2: Trends in amount spent on lounge/living room furniture, 2005-09
- Sharp decline for the upper middle market
- Some recovery in dining room furniture ownership
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- Figure 3: Trends in ownership and purchasing of dining room furniture, 2005-09
- Dwellings are getting smaller
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- Figure 4: Trends in number of living rooms (including dining rooms) in home, 2005-09
- Home is the hub for free time
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- Figure 5: Trends in agreement with selected lifestyle statements, 2005-09
- Free time spent at home
- Little change in entertaining
- Return to family mealtimes
- Longer timeframe between home revamps
- Less desire for inspiration
- Television influence
- Expanding into the loft
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- Figure 6: Trends in home extensions, 2005-09
- Extensions should lead to additional demand
- Extensions could trigger new furniture for the lounge
- Conservatories often have different styles
- Rise of the general retailers
- Internet retailing
- Rising prices for raw materials push up costs
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- Figure 7: Consumer price indices for furniture and furnishings, January 2009-December 2009
- Cheap imports
- Furniture retail casualties 2008/09
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- Figure 8: Furniture retailers with significant living and dining room assortment, entering administration, 2008/09
Broader Market Environment
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- Key points
- Discretionary spending down in the recession
- Green shoots of recovery in late 2009
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- Figure 9: Trends in PDI, consumer expenditure and GDP, at current prices, 2004-14
- Discretionary purchases delayed
- The housing market
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- Figure 10: UK housing market – number of transactions, average house prices and number of years between moves, 2004-08
- Upturn in demand for mortgages in autumn 2009
- Increase in household numbers bodes well for furniture
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- Figure 11: UK households and size of households, 2004-14
- Underlying growth in the population
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- Figure 12: Structure of the UK population, by age, 2004-14
- Contemporary styling to grow
- More grey singletons
- Continuing shift towards affluence
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- Figure 13: Structure of the UK adult population, by socio-economic group, 2004-14
- Growth in unemployment
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- Figure 14: UK workforce, total by gender and unemployed, 2004-14
- Weak Pound makes imports more expensive
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- Figure 15: Monthly average exchange rates against the euro and the US Dollar, 2007-09
- VAT to rise again in 2010
- The environment
Competitive Context
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- Key points
- Sharp downturn in furniture spend
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- Figure 16: Comparison of living and dining furniture with other household markets, 2004-09*
Strengths and Weaknesses in the Market
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- Strengths
- Weaknesses
Who’s Innovating?
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- Key points
- Examples of innovation
- Recycling as a theme
- Healthier living
- Fitted living room furniture
- Accessories
- Advice service
- Designer tie-ups
- Express delivery
Market Size and Forecast
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- Key points
- Furniture sales hit by slow housing market
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- Figure 17: Living room furniture sales, at current and constant 2009 prices, 2004-14
- Long-term shift away from dining
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- Figure 18: Dining room furniture sales, at current and constant 2009 prices, 2004-14
Segment Performance
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- Key points
- Living room furniture
- Recession dents sales
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- Figure 19: UK retail sales of living room furniture, by type and value, 2005-09
- Falling leather prices improve affordability of sofas
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- Figure 20: UK retail sales of upholstered furniture, by type, 2005-09
- Quality improvements boost self-assembly
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- Figure 21: Non-upholstered living room furniture, by type of assembly, 2005-09
- Imports help lower prices
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- Figure 22: Dining furniture, by type of assembly, 2005-09
- Consumers want flexibility of choice
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- Figure 23: Dining furniture, by piece, 2005-09
Companies and Products
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- Key points
- Major retailers
- DFS
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- Figure 24: DFS Trading Ltd, financial performance, 2007 and 2008
- Furniture Village
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- Figure 25: Furniture Village, financial performance, 2008 and 2009
- Harveys The Furniture Store
- IKEA
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- Figure 26: IKEA, UK financial performance, 2007 and 2008
- Multiyork
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- Figure 27: Multiyork Furniture Ltd, financial performance, 2007 and 2008
- ScS Upholstery
- Argos
- B&Q
- CSL
- Homebase
- John Lewis
- Laura Ashley
- Marks & Spencer
- Next
- Supermarkets
- Furniture manufacturers
- Sofa Brands International
- Ercol Furniture
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- Figure 28: Ercol Furniture Ltd, financial performance, 2007 and 2008
- JDP Furniture
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- Figure 29: JDP Furniture Group Limited, financial performance, 2007 and 2008
- Ekornes
- Halo (www.haloliving.co.uk)
- Vale Bridgecraft
- La-Z-Boy Incorporated
- SofaSofa
- Morris Furniture Group
- HJ Berry
- Sutcliffe Group
- Corndell
- Natuzzi
- Dwell
- Sofa Workshop
- Wesley-Barrell
Channels to Market
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- Key points
- Non-specialists gaining share of furniture
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- Figure 30: Estimated retail shares of living and dining room furniture sales, 2005-09
- IKEA and DFS continue to dominate
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- Figure 31: Estimated shares for living and dining room furniture sales, by selected retailers, 2005-09
Brand Communication and Promotion
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- Key points
- Adspend falls from 2006 peak
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- Figure 32: Main media advertising expenditure on living and dining room furniture, 2005-08
- DFS a dominant spender
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- Figure 33: Main media advertising expenditure on living and dining room furniture, 2005-09
- Press and TV rule
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- Figure 34: Main media advertising expenditure on living and dining room furniture, 2005-09
- Seasonal peaks in advertising
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- Figure 35: Average monthly main media advertising expenditure on living and dining room furniture, 2006-09
Living Space and Factors Influencing Choice
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- Key points
- Seven in ten have separate living rooms
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- Figure 36: Types of rooms in home, November 2009
- Wide variety of housing types available
- Many more separate lounges than dining rooms
- Open-plan living has a younger bias
- Older bias for conservatories
- Dining rooms reflect social standing
- Shopping for sofas and armchairs
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- Figure 37: Factors influencing choice of upholstered furniture, November 2009
- Aiming high
- Experience and expectation change with age
- The influence of children
- Style plays a major role
- Fitting in
- Bouncing on the sofa
- Easy care
- Recliners have an older appeal
- Sofa beds have a southern bias
- Higher demand for service with age
- IFC swings decisions
- Instant fix
- Take away the old
- Repertoire
Buying Behaviour and Preferences
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- Key points
- Attitudes towards buying
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- Figure 38: Attitudes towards buying living and dining room furniture, November 2009
- Replacing the old is a key trigger for purchase
- Updating the style
- Longer-lasting furniture
- Shunters and shifters
- Touching and feeling matters more to over-45s
- Deal seekers
- Researchers
- Identifying targets
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- Figure 39: Target buyer groups for living and dining room furniture, November 2009
- Quality Seekers (20%)
- Apathetic (39%)
- Style Updaters (20%)
- Deal Makers (21%)
Consumer Attitudes and Typologies
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- Key points
- Living and dining behaviour and preferences
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- Figure 40: Attitudes towards living and dining rooms, November 2009
- TV dining most popular
- Women are more style-conscious
- Storage matters
- Consumer typologies
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- Figure 41: Living and dining consumer typologies, November 2009
- Relaxers (42%)
- Lounge Centred (19%)
- Private Diners (27%)
- Entertainers (12%)
Appendix – Internal Market Environment
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- Figure 42: Ownership and purchasing of lounge/living room furniture, by demographics, 2009
- Figure 43: Ownership and purchasing of dining room furniture, by demographics, 2009
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Appendix – Living Space and Factors Influencing Choice
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- Figure 44: Types of rooms in home, by demographics, November 2009
- Figure 45: Factors influencing choice of upholstered furniture, by demographics, November 2009
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- Figure 46: Factors influencing choice of upholstered furniture, by demographics, November 2009
- Figure 47: Factors influencing choice of upholstered furniture, by demographics, November 2009
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- Figure 48: Repertoire of factors influencing choice of upholstered furniture, by demographics, November 2009
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Appendix – Buying Behaviour and Preferences
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- Figure 49: Attitudes towards buying living and dining room furniture, by demographics, November 2009
- Figure 50: Attitudes towards buying living and dining room furniture, by demographics, November 2009
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- Figure 51: Attitudes towards buying living and dining room furniture, by demographics, November 2009
- Figure 52: Attitudes towards buying living and dining room furniture, by target buying groups, November 2009
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- Figure 53: Target buying groups, by demographics, November 2009
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Appendix – Consumer Attitudes and Typologies
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- Figure 54: Attitudes towards living and dining rooms, by demographics, November 2009
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- Figure 55: Attitudes towards living and dining rooms, by demographics, November 2009
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- Figure 56: Attitudes towards living and dining rooms, by demographics, November 2009
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- Figure 57: Consumer typologies, by demographics, November 2009
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- Figure 58: Types of rooms in home, by consumer typologies, November 2009
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- Figure 59: Factors influencing choice of upholstered furniture, by consumer typologies, November 2009
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- Figure 60: Attitudes towards buying living and dining room furniture, by consumer typologies, November 2009
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- Figure 61: Attitudes towards living and dining rooms, by consumer typologies, November 2009
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