MARKET INTELLIGENCE

Following the post-pandemic bubble, which categorized the segment in 2021 and 2022, for the past two years, the contract furniture market and industry normalized and reduced by a few percentage points.

The production of contract furniture and furnishings in Europe surpasses EUR 13.5 billion, whereas consumption nearly reached EUR 11 billion. This discrepancy can be explained by the relevant weight of exports between Europe and the rest of the world, as about one-fifth of local production is destined for projects in North America, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific.

The major manufacturing countries in Europe are the UK, Italy, Germany, Poland, and Sweden, which together provide over 60% of total European output. However, the main consuming countries are the UK, Germany, Italy, and France, which together account for more than half the market.

Despite difficult market conditions, the European furniture sector has proven its resilience, staying above pre-pandemic levels, supported by a high level of integration and market concentration. The contract furniture segment has outperformed the entire furniture sector over the past two years.

While the domestic market has shown clear signs of slowing down, we can certainly confirm that the production of contract furniture has also been sustained by supplies to overseas markets. Many supplies in North America, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific in the hospitality, restaurants, real estate, luxury shops and airports sectors are made by European companies.

COMPARISONS BETWEEN SEGMENTS

One interesting way to observe and track changes in the market is to take a look at the performance of the single contract furniture segments to understand which ones have fully recovered pre-pandemic market values and which ones instead are still struggling to adapt to the structural challenges the global furniture industry and markets face:

• The retail sector (the 3rd largest segment) is facing significant changes, as consumer demands adapt to the growth of e-commerce and the use of smart technology in physical stores. These factors will pose threats to current business models. Within the segment, the mass-retail market seems to face larger difficulties, while luxury shops performed positively.
• Contract furniture’s largest internal segment is the office furniture segment, which has been going through its era of transformation in recent years. On one hand, external changes in traditional working standards and on the other hand, an unfavourable macroeconomic scenario depict a challenging path forward, more so than when considering the contract furniture business in general. In fact, traditional office furniture manufacturers that have a market presence in the contract segment have begun to expand product portfolios to be adaptable to other contract segments besides office environments (such as education and hospitality).
• The hospitality sector (the 2nd largest segment) represents one of the main engines of the contract furniture business, especially after the pandemic market drop. This segment is indicated as one of the most promising by the majority of contract furniture companies.
• The educational furniture segment has also done relatively while, as it represents the second-best-performing segment after marine in the past 5 years.
• The marine segment didn’t see a dramatic decline in 2020 and grew significantly in the following years. It was then sustained by the booming number of cruise passengers and related intense activity of shipyards, noting, of course, that a portion of highly customized luxury kitchens and furniture is absorbed by superyachts.
• After increasing significantly during the pandemic, the contract furniture production for the healthcare industry progressively slowed in recent years.
• Despite difficulties registered by the construction sector, contract furniture for the real estate segment has shown a positive evolution, as well as the restaurants and bars (another increasing business) category.

 

Among the various factors affecting the contract furniture sector across all segments are the resizing of production capacity within the European continent, as well as strategic decisions regarding industrial rationalization and mergers & acquisitions. These have led to several production plant closures and a surge in market concentration.
Some examples include ISG shutting down (freeing up quite a significant share of the market especially in the UK), ITAB acquiring two direct competitors in foreign markets (Cefla and HMY) in the span of 5 years, and other smaller and specialized companies like Bisley (office furniture) and Woodland Kitchens buying other players that increase their direct presence in the contract market. In general, the competitive landscape is quickly changing.

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• CSIL’s Research Report ‘The Contract Furniture and Furnishings Market in Europe’ offers a comprehensive picture of the European contract furniture business. Find out more at https://www.worldfurnitureonline.com/report/the-contract-furniture-and-furnishings-market-in-europe-2
• Also available: ‘The World Market for High-End, Luxury & Design Furniture’  in-depth analysis of the high-end furniture market worldwide. Further information at https://www.worldfurnitureonline.com/report/world-market-high-end-luxury-design-furniture 

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Source: CSIL World Furniture Magazine #06, June 2025

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