A need to work, and study, at home during the COVID-19 pandemic is leading to a spike in home office furniture sales that resources are hoping turns into a long-term trend for the category.
Indeed, sales have picked up in the past two months, particularly via e-commerce channels. Officials are hoping those sales not only continue, but also pick up with the reopening of brick-and-mortar stores.
“For us, the category has always been strong,” said Neil McKenzie, director of product development at Hekman Furniture. “It is one of the leading categories we have, and it has gotten stronger with everyone working out of their homes and looking at their working environment, saying ‘I want to improve it.’
“The demand will be here a while; working at the card table isn’t going to cut it anymore. That has created a surge that has been pleasant to see.”
A recent survey commissioned by the American Home Furnishings Alliance said that about 74% of American office professionals have worked at home due to stay-at-home mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it appears the trend is likely to continue, thus creating opportunities within the home office furniture category.
According to research firm Global Workplace Analytics, some 56% of the work force holds a job that is “compatible with remote work.” It also estimates that as much as 30% of the work force will be working from home multiple days a week by the end of 2021.
How will product develop?
Many say it’s hard to predict what the specific product development trends will be in the. Like any other category, there will be multiple SKUs and styles developed for a myriad of consumer tastes.
Currently demand has been strongest in smaller-scale accent and writing desks and smaller file cabinets.
“We have also seen a jump in executive,” McKenzie said of groups featuring larger-scale executive desks, file cabinets and bookshelves.
Smaller-scale desks also appear to be doing well at home office and home entertainment specialist Martin Furniture, which saw an 80% to 90% increase in office furniture sales in April, a trend driven not only by professionals, but also by students who have had to study from home. As most brick-and-mortar accounts were closed during that period, this spike was driven largely by e-commerce and commercial office sales.
“With everyone being directed to work from home, our product categories fit right into that,” said Gil Martin, CEO.
The company has done well with small-scale desks ranging from 24 by 48 inches to 28 by 54 inches wide that can easily fit into bedrooms, living rooms and hallways. Companion bookcases and lateral file cabinets also have tended to sell with these pieces.
“In e-commerce, we still have a strong demand for executive collections, but the more casual, smaller-scale desks, bookcases and lateral files are the three biggest product categories of what we do, in casual and industrial looks in the right finishes,” Martin said.
Riverside Furniture also is seeing a spike in the business, driven largely by the increased number of people working at home. Here, too, smaller-scale desks — including those between 54 and 56 inches wide retailing from $799 to $999 — remain one of the drivers in the category.
“They can be drop shipped via e-commerce, and we can also drop- ship them to brick-and-mortar customers,” said John Iasiello, senior vice president of planning and business development, noting that these and other desks come with a variety of matching chairs.
Small-scale office solutions, including desks that are suitable for laptop use, are also driving business at home office and home entertainment specialist BDI. Earlier this spring, it saw a 60% increase in home office traffic on its website vs. the same time last year, part of it driven by interest in smaller scale office pieces.
“To have that kind of growth in the home office category is very notable to us,” said Dave Adams, vice president of marketing. “People are carving out a niche for a home office wherever they can. Not everyone has a room they can dedicate to home office. They are having to be creative.”
He added that the smaller-scale office concept, which includes laptop tables that start around $289 retail up to 48-inch compact desks retailing at $999, allows consumers to set up a workspace in multiple areas of the home.
“People are not finding the real estate to put in a bigger executive office suite,” Adams said, adding, “Consumers also are trying to be price conscious right now.”
Adams noted that other popular items in the home office category are adjustable height sit-to-stand desks that raise from around 25 to 54 inches depending on the model. BDI currently has five models in the line that continue to do well with those seeking ergonomically friendly office footprints.
“We are certainly continuing to see a strong interest in sit-to-stand desk solutions during this COVID crisis as consumers look for versatility in their workday,” he said.
Sit-to-stand desks also continue to be popular at Twin Star Home, which has several models in its line that offer features such as wireless charging and touch controls for the adjustable height mechanism.
They also are doing well at Martin Furniture, according to Gil Martin.
“Some are more promotionally priced and some are more design-oriented so they can fit into a room and look like a piece of nice furniture as opposed to a slab of laminate,” Martin said.