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PRODUCTS FURNITURE CARE & REPAIR
MEET THE FIXERS From home visits to over-the-counter sales, furniture care and repair specialists fulfil an important role in the industry, offering purchasers peace of mind alongside the potential of salvaging items that might otherwise end up in landfill. This month, Furniture News looks at some of the issues affecting the sector, and how its leaders are making a difference right across the supply chain …
According to the Furniture Industry Research Association (FIRA), consumer expenditure in the furnishings, household equipment and routine maintenance sector exceeded £60b for the first time in 2018 – and this figure is only likely to have grown since, despite consumers increasingly adopting less wasteful habits and embracing furniture repair and reuse. Yet while demand for home goods soared during the pandemic, so too did the challenges facing the sector’s specialists on the ground, and the delivery of ancillary care products. House calls became a social distancing minefield, and consumers soon became less tolerant of delays. For now, challenges remain – notably a shortage of specialist repair skills – yet the sector has evolved and adapted to meet the demands of today’s ‘new normal’, providing the industry with support to help minimise returns
and keep consumers satisfied, while offering retailers valuable add-on sale opportunities. This month’s panel comprises: Ben Staerck, MD of cleaning, repair and restoration product provider Furniture Clinic; Gill Finch, MD of Stroolmount UK, which offers flooring and furniture protection products; John Bowater, MD, and James Lane, owner, Homeserve Furniture Repairs – an on-site repair service for leather, soft furnishings, beds and cabinets, voted Best Furniture Care/Repair Provider in Furniture News’ 2021 Readers’ Choice Awards; and Martin Napper, CEO of Castelan, which offers services that help prepare products for sale and resolve pre- or post-delivery concerns. Read on to discover how each has negotiated the pandemic, how their products and services have evolved, and what they make of changing consumer demands …
WHILE DEMAND FOR HOME GOODS SOARED, SO TOO DID THE CHALLENGES FACING THE SECTOR’S SPECIALISTS
This month’s panel: Ben Staerck; Gill Finch; Martin Napper; and John Bowater and James Lane
