What do you think? From emerging trends to the latest business principles, Furniture News is setting out to gauge the trade’s feelings on a variety of industry-specific topics. Today, we’re asking: "What’s the next hot furniture/furnishings product trend?"
Andy Stockwell (Gardiner Haskins): The next ‘trend’ is already here, but unlike most trends which come and go, this one is here to stay. Sustainable, planet-friendly, furniture and furnishings will come more to the fore in 2022 and beyond. Manufacturers are already moving in this direction – Ashwood Designs, Westbridge, Hypnos, Harrison Spinks and others are all moving towards the use of recycled materials for their fabrics, and products which are 100% recyclable at end of use. In a similar vein, recycled/refurbished furniture will grow in popularity – maybe not through the mainstream channels, but upcycling of secondhand furniture will be a route taken by a new generation of furniture buyers with sustainability and finances at the forefront of their minds
Dids Macdonald OBE (ACID): Bespoke, made to measure
John Conroy (Morrisofa Europe): Products that help deliver the connected home – we are working hard to become the manufacturer of the first mass-produced voice-controlled recliner
John Northwood (independent agent): It’s so unpredictable at the moment. As an example, we have seen a massive shift from plain, neutral designs to bold colours and designs, particularly with velvet fabrics
Mike Murray (Land of Beds, AIS): More emphasis on end-to-end recycled products, and having full traceability of the components within the product
Mike Whitman (Iconography): It’s got to be 3D models and augmented reality (AR) – the dream is incorporating that into an option selector on an ecommerce website or EPoS terminal, and we’re actively working on this with a few clients already
Paul Wray (Modern Outlook Furniture): With the increased prices on containers, furniture in the mid- to high-end bracket with a good loading on a container that can warrant a price increase to the customer is the trend at the moment. Electric fires that look like gas fires are the next hot trend
Peter Harding (Fairway Furniture): Undoubtedly, with customers wanting an even greater focus on product sustainability, manufacturers will need to work with retailers on circular supply chains for new products they bring to market
Rob Walker (Orbital Vision): Customers being able to view products in 3D and in their own home using AR
Royce Clark (Grampian Furnishers): Anything that is in stock or can be delivered in less than 20 weeks?! I’m glad to say a move away from grey as being 90% of the furnishings sold in recent times – colour is coming back, with blue and yellow being the most popular. Neutral tones are also coming back through, especially in the flooring side
Steve Adams (Mattress Online): Sustainable and vegan-friendly mattresses. We are at the beginning of a bell curve – the boost in demand for vegan FMCG will filter through to furnishings over the next 12-18 months
Steve Pickering (Sussex Beds): Products with an ecological benefit are gradually coming to market. Focusing on the use of recycled material, carbon-neutral manufacture or end-of-life disposability all provide an added benefit for the end-consumer
Wendy Martin Green (Peter Green Furnishers): Last year seemed to have been all about simplicity for us – in design and thinking. We have spoken a lot about the clean lines and the no-fuss appeal of mid-century modern and Scandi design in our blogs, and have had a good response from the public. The organic-modern movement of 2020 now seems to be giving way to Japandi design … a form-follows-function-led blend of rustic Japanese design, softened by the spirit of the comfy Danish hygge look that was popular a few years back. In a nutshell, monochrome palettes punctuated with a few ‘pops’ of nature-based colour, lots of texture, simple shapes and lines, and natural materials, are all trending!
This article featured in the January 2022 edition of Furniture News magazine.
