The office furniture market - France (2024)

1.2 A growing global market

According to Icrowdfr, the global office furniture market was estimated at $** billion in **** and is expected to grow at a rate of *.*% per year to reach $**.** billion in ****. This growth is largely due to the emergence of the tertiary economy in many developing countries.

Global office furniture market World, ****-****, US$ billion Source: ****

1.3 A French market gradually recovering from the crisis

According to a report published byAmeublement Français, the French trade organization for furnishings and space planning, the French office furniture market is in good shape, having recovered from the loss of sales due to Covid-**.

Trend in the size of the French office and store furniture manufacturing market France, ****, in thousands of € Source: ****

The French office and store furniture manufacturing market peaked in **** with sales of €*.** billion. Despite a slight dip in ****, the sector is recovering from the fall seen during the Covid period in ****.

L'Ameublement Français forecasts sales for **** of €*.** billion for the office furniture market alone. Cross-referencing this figure with the graph above, it can be seen that the office and store furniture market is roughly equally divided between office and store furniture.

After a significant recovery in ****, with growth of +**.*%, the office furniture market maintained its resilience in ****, recording growth of +*.*%. This performance enabled the market to return to its pre-crisis level. In ****, all market players experienced growth, with almost all surpassing their pre-crisis value in ****. However, French manufacturers are still lagging behind , despite successive growth of +*.*% in **** and +*.*% in ****. These manufacturers were particularly hard hit during the crisis, recording a decline of over -**.*%.

The ...

1.4 Foreign trade

To study foreign trade figures, the following two customs codes were considered: ******, "Metal office furniture (***)".

Breakdown of office furnishings by material France, ****, in Source: ****

given that wood and metal account for around **% of office furniture, we can estimate the total volume of imports/exports based on office furniture exclusively made of wood or metal.

Foreign trade in office furniture France, ****-****, millions of euros Source: ****

France is a very large importer of office furniture: imports rose by **% between **** and **** to reach $*** million, but remained well ahead of exports. Exports were down *% on ****. In ****, they represented *** million dollars.

Imports grew faster than exports, followed by a recent decline in imports. The French coverage rate (***)x*** has decreased from **.*% in **** to **.*% in ****.

France's trading partners are varied, although Europe ranks very highly among the French market's best customers and suppliers.

Destinations of office furniture exports France, ****, % of total Source: French Customs In fact, the main destinations for French exports are European: Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and the UK account for **% of total exports in ****.

Origin of French office furniture imports France, ****, % of total Source: ****

When it comes to imports, the picture is the same. Although China appears in fifth position, it only accounts for ...

1.5 The impact of covid-19 on the office furniture market

The impact of covid-** on office furniture manufacturers

Office and store furniture manufacturing sales index France, ****-****, Base *** in **** Source: ****

nAF code: **.**Z "Manufacture of office and store furniture"

The chart above highlights sales indices over two different periods: the first from February **** to February ****,which covers confinements and curfews and the second from February **** to February **** , when there was only one lockdown (***) in sales index between April **** and April ****.

Impact of covid-** on office furniture wholesalers

Sales index for office furniture wholesalers France, ****-****, Base *** in **** Source: ****

nAF code: **.**Z "Wholesale of office furniture"

As in the previous chart, there's a big drop in the sales index when comparing April **** with April ****, the difference being **.** (***). On the other hand, we note that the recovery in the office and store furniture manufacturers market segment appears to be somewhat stronger than that in the office furniture wholesalers market segment, since the average difference between the periods June **** - February **** and June **** - February **** was *.** for furniture manufacturers and *.** for retailers.

2.1 Non-residential construction on the wane

Cumulative surface area of non-residential premises France, ****, in tens of km* Source: ****

By their very nature, the construction of non-residential premises feeds the office furniture market, as they need to be furnished and fitted out. The first few months of the covid-** crisis greatly affected the sector, hence the sharp decline during this period : from December **** to December ****, ** km² of non-residential premises were authorized and **.* km² were started, down -**% and -**% respectively on the previous ** months. This means that, after a drop in construction in ****, there will be growth in the surface area of premises under construction until ****, after which the market seems to be losing momentum.

Also according to the Ministry of Sustainable Development, between December **** and November ****, the authorization of surface areas destined to become offices fell by -**.*% compared with the previous period, to *.* million m*.

2.2 The changing face of older office real estate

Demand for furniture also depends on the number of existing real estate transactions. Furniture is in fact a capital good with a much lower purchase frequency than other consumer goods, particularly for professionals whose objective is to maximize the lif espan of their furniture due to its cost. However, when a professional carries out a real estate transaction as part of their job, it's rare that they don't invest in new furniture, or at least leave the old furniture as it is.

According to Olivier Ambrosiali, Head of Sales and Investment at BNP Paribas Real Estate Transaction France, commercial real estate was expected to exceed ** billion euros invested in ****[***]

The covid-** crisis has had a major impact on the way we work, with the emergence of telecommuting. A number of companies have questioned the usefulness of ever-larger physical offices, while more and more employees want to be able to telework from time to time (***). [***]

The market is concentrated around Paris and the La Défense district (***), as evidenced by the sales of the Eqho and W towers at over *** million euros and the Majunga tower at *** million euros[***].

This downward trend in demand for workspace will continue in **** and ****, when the ...

2.3 Demand trends

In general, demand for capital goods can be supported by new trends that reflect a search for well-being and comfort. The attention paid by companies to their furniture therefore has a positive effect on the furniture market by supporting demand for renewal, and thus contributes to sustaining domestic production. In particular, for professionals, acquiring quality furniture is an essential element in guaranteeing good working conditions for their employees. This concern has a positive impact on demand for furniture, and adds to the growing importance attached to ecology and the environment.

Well-being at work and new office designs

Two new growth factors are affecting the market: the emergence of coworking spaces and the growing demand for conviviality and well-being in the workplace. According to Bureauxapartager.com, which has created a "coworking indicator", the number of coworking spaces will increase **-fold between **** and ****:

Total number of coworking spaces France, ****-**** Source: ****

According toGlobal Agencementin ****, * out of ** employees felt that office design was a key factor in well-being at work, and **% of employees felt that their company didn't pay enough attention to it. The quest for well-being at work through well-designed spaces is taking root particularly in service sector companies. Examples of new workspaces ...

3.1 Overview of the value chain

Source: ****

3.2 Office furniture manufacturing

change in the number of office and store furniture manufacturing companies France, ****-**** Source: ****

change in number of employees in office and store furniture manufacturers France, ****-****, in units Source: ****

The office furniture sector is in a phase of concentration: between **** and ****, the number of companies working in this sector fell by **.*% to ***. In terms of headcount, the total number of employees fell by **.*% over the same period. In ****, office and store furniture manufacturing companies employed **,*** people.

Source: ****

Four regions account for half of all companies in the region: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Ile-de-France, Pays de la Loire and Nouvelle-Aquitaine

3.3 Office furniture stores

Source: ****

In France, in ****, the number of office furniture wholesalers was estimated at *** (***). The Île-de-France region held a dominant position, with **.**% of office furniture wholesalers present in the region in ****, and these companies employed *,*** people, i.e. **.**% of the total number of employees .

3.4 Distribution channels

Sales breakdown

Direct sales were the main distribution channel in ****. Indirect sales are not far behind, taking *nd place with **% of market share, according to Ameublement français. Finally come sales via partners with *.*% of PDM.

Breakdown of sales by distribution channel France, ****, % Source: ****

The internet is also set to play a key role in distribution channels. Indeed, e-commerce is credited with strong growth in the French furniture market, as the following graph shows. It's a safe bet, then, that online sales are experiencing and will continue to experience the same dynamism in the office furniture segment.

In ****,Ameublement Français describes a "re-intermediation of sales", caused by * main reasons:

Whereas in ****/****, sales were driven by major construction sites, these have seen their weight diminish in the face of larger purchases by SMEs and ETIs, which are more difficult targets in terms of direct sales by manufacturers Closure of branches of foreign manufacturers, who now use resellers to reach the French market Diversification of resellers' offer towards hotels and restaurants

4.1 Best-selling products

Office furniture sales are dominated by seating, desks, tables and storage units, which accounted for almost **% of total billings in ****.

Breakdown of office furniture sales by product France, ****, % of sales Source: ****

Between **** and ****, all growth rates for these categories are negative due to the Covid-** crisis: from -**.*% for display furniture to -**.*% for privacy furniture. However, according to Infoburomag - which cites the Ameublement Français report - business picked up in **** and sales made up for the shortfall in ****.

4.2 Price comparison

Classic products

The trend is to move upmarket. Producers are emphasizing design, and height-adjustable desks are on the rise, as are ergonomic and executive chairs. France has its elite producers in Caray, France Bureau and Silvera.

The distinction between top-of-the-range and bottom-of-the-range is particularly significant in terms of price, as shown in Table *, where the prices of top-of-the-range vendors start where those of bottom-of-the-range vendors end.

Table *: Comparative prices for an executive chair from four companies.

Similarly, Table * shows that the entry and exit prices for top-of-the-range companies are twice as high as those for bottom-of-the-range companies.

Table *: Comparative prices of executive desks for four companies.

Example of a new product: the phonebox

Designed with acoustics in mind, phoneboxes are spaces where you can make a call in complete privacy. Open, semi-open or closed, they come in various sizes and prices.

Kollori, an office furniture specialist with a wide range of innovative products, gives us an idea of phonebox prices on the market according to size:

Individual phonebox

Phonebox for two

Phonebox for * people

5.1 Regulatory framework

When selling new furniture, it is compulsory to label a certain number of characteristics :

Price and list of items offered for this price, such as whether or not delivery is included, main materials, manufacturing process, finish, etc. Overall dimensions, environmental contribution, Biocidal properties, If the furniture is made of leather, there is additional information on the animal species and, more generally, on the type of leather, If the furniture is made of textile, the label must show the name and percentage by weight of all the fibers.

In addition, every piece of office furniture must comply with certain important standards: these include fire-protection standards, robustness standards and environmental quality standards.

The NF Sécurité Confortique mark, which in **** became NF Office Excellence Certifié, details the benchmark characteristics for the safety, adaptability, durability and fire resistance of furniture. ISO standards, and in particular ISO ****, demonstrate the organization of responsibilities guaranteeing standard quality within the company's production NF environnement, ISO ***** or FSC standards for wood materials are standards that guarantee a reduced impact on the environment and work towards the company's environmental performance.

If credit is offered to finance the goods, then this procedure is subject to consumer credit regulations.

If the sale ...

5.2 NAF nomenclature

The manufacture of home textiles is referenced by Insee under code **.**Z entitled "Manufacture of office and store furniture".

It includes all of the following items:

manufacture of seating for offices and workshops, hotels, restaurants and public premises ; manufacture of seating for theaters; manufacture of special furniture for stores: counters, display units, shelving, etc. manufacture of office furniture ; manufacture of laboratory benches and chairs and other laboratory seating, laboratory furniture (***); manufacture of furniture for churches, schools and restaurants.

The wholesale distribution of office furniture is referenced by Insee under code **.**Z entitled "Commerce en gros de mobilier de bureau" (***), which includes all the above elements, not for manufacturing, but for trading.

6.1 Segmentation

• Ikea France
• Steelcase
• Sokoa
• Nowy Styl France (Group Nowy Styl)
• Haworth France
• Clen Solutions
• Buronomic
• BUT International
• Conforama France
• Adveo Top Office
• Alternative
• Flit Desk
• Harmony Group
• Vestalis
• Caray
• Negostck