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How Contactless Shopping is Changing the Furniture Retail Experience

Wednesday 6 October 2021, 5:50AM

By Premium SEO NZ

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The Covid-19 pandemic accelerated the world into the fully digital age. While changes had been slow before the pandemic, the 4IR suddenly became firmly entrenched a mere matter of months into 2020.

And while some retailers are looking forward to things returning to how they were before the pandemic, this is unlikely to happen. The luxury of viewing and ordering products online and having them delivered directly to your door has fundamentally changed the way consumers shop.

Auckland-based furniture retailers have not been immune to these developments, and have had to make significant changes in a short amount of time to how they conduct their business. While it used to be common practice for furniture shoppers to physically view products at a brick-and-mortar showroom, where they could test out pieces before making a purchase, it’s now far more regular for shoppers to view and purchase furniture online.

But consumers don’t make these kinds of larger online purchases blindly. The better a website is at offering very clear product descriptions, measurements, reviews, and photographs, the more likely a sale will result. Some retailers who sell furniture in Newmarket, Auckland’s premium shopping district, have fully embraced this online shift by offering consumers contactless viewings of their products in a similar manner to how estate agents allow homebuyers to view houses online. Such viewings give consumers a personalised experience and enable them to interact more with a product than were they to simply view a photo online. Consumers can then do the ‘final test’ once the furniture piece is delivered to their home and make a return if necessary.

While it is unlikely that the physical shopping experience will completely disappear, furniture retailers who are able to fully integrate their online and physical offerings are likely to gain a competitive advantage in the 4IR.