The marriage season usually brings joy to furniture dealers as sales take a leap forward. However, this year has been a disappointment as the market has not livened up the way it used to.

Major furniture stores in the Kathmandu valley have reported that sales have remained unchanged even though the wedding season is moving ahead at full speed. The few who have reported an increase in business said transactions have risen by a paltry 5-10 percent. 

“The trend of purchasing room furniture during the wedding season has changed over the past few years,” said Dev Raj Mishra, chairman of Karuna Interiors. “While this period used to be the most profitable season in the furniture industry, things have now become different.” Karuna Interiors has been serving domestic furniture buyers for the past 25 years.

According to Mishra, while people in the past used to buy a whole new range of furniture, they are now going for particular items as the trend of using customized furniture is on the rise these days. Another factor affecting business during prime season, according to Mishra, is a shift in priorities. “Nowadays, people don’t wait for a specific period to buy furniture items. They buy it whenever they need it,” Mishra said.

Despite business not being up to the mark, sales of popular items like bedroom sets, dining tables and sofa sets have increased 5-10 percent, traders said. “The current sales figure is no different than that of normal days,” said Sunaina Saraf, director of Urban Design. She added that people buy the piece of furniture they want when they need it and do not wait for special occasions. Saraf said that a growth in the trend of having the house fully furnished by professionals has changed the buying habit of customers too. “Many people are opting for interior designing firms who fulfil their entire requirement. This too has changed the consumption habit of customers,” she added.

Meanwhile, another prominent name in the domestic furniture market, Bira Furniture, has expressed a similar view. “Compared to previous years, sales at our store have dropped significantly,” he said. The market for furniture items hasn’t gone up in the way expected even during special occasions for the past nine months, he added. “Prices have gone up significantly in the past few years. However, people’s disposable income hasn’t increased and they don’t have money to buy things they want,” Shrestha said.

According to traders, another reason for the drop in sales is the proliferation of outlets resulting in smaller shares of the market for individual dealers. It is estimated that the Kathmandu valley contains more than 50 large stores dealing in furniture.

source: The Kathmandu post,1 Dec 2012