With an increasingly large share of the Indian workforce working from home (WFH) amid the lockdown, and with the trend expected to continue for the next couple of months, there is likely to be an increase in the demand for furniture such as chairs and desks.
According to Subodh Mehta, Senior Vice-President, Godrej Interio, the lockdown has also forced people to spend a lot of time at home, making them “discover” more about their homes than ever before.
This could the trigger the purchase of specific pieces of furniture that were earlier not considered essential.
“There is a clear trend of nesting at home which is emerging. Work-from-home items will be required as people are suddenly feeling the need for a good chair or a desk. So, furniture brands may need to repurpose their communication and brands, and understand and satisfy customer needs,” Mehta told
Godrej Interio, the ₹2,300-crore furniture brand of Godrej & Boyce, which usually caters to the mass premium or premium segments, is also looking to launch an affordable range of furniture post-lockdown.
The entry level furniture under the new Essential range will be at least 10-15 per cent cheaper than the rest, said Mehta.
“We have been working on this for the past four to five months and we hope to start getting the benefit of this once we resume our manufacturing operations. This was done because home furniture was getting very competitive due to the entry of online players and IKEA, who are selling their products cheap. We started working on this project, and it so happens that it it fits well in the post Covid-19 situation also,” he said.