The world upholstered furniture consumption amounts to USD 80 billion, about 15% of the total furniture market. The upholstered furniture segment has been one of the most increasing within the furniture market.

The 2019 (pre-pandemic) levels have been reached and surpassed by all the geographic regions (except for South America), with Europe and North America being the fastest-growing markets. Asia and Pacific, and North America are the leading markets for upholstered furniture, jointly contributing to nearly 70% of the global market. Over the past decade, North America has gained market share at the expense of Europe, which saw its weight in the world upholstered furniture market decrease.

In terms of individual countries, 2022 was marked by a sustained increase in the United States, which is confirmed to be the largest market for upholstered furniture worldwide. On the other hand, China, the second leading market, had a slowdown mainly caused by the poor performance of the economy, the recession of the housing market, the pandemic dynamics and related containment measures.

The world market for upholstered furniture is projected to contract in real terms in 2023, with consumption decreasing in all world regions except Asia and the Middle East. This results in a resumption of growth in 2024, with modest growth in Europe and North America and a substantial consumption increase in Asia.

According to CSIL’s survey (2023), which targeted a sample of global manufacturers in the upholstered furniture industry, nearly 40% of the companies identified “increasing the number of suppliers” as the most frequently mentioned strategy and “shortening the supply chains by being more local”. About 20% of the companies consider moving production closer to the markets where they sell (nearshoring) as an increasingly important strategy.

Being one of the most labor-intensive segments within the furniture sector, the upholstered furniture industry is more than others subject to labor cost impact. As such, this industry was one of the first to globalize. Production localization is influenced by the convenience of sourcing labor and raw materials, among other factors, making some countries more competitive. Approximately 40% of the CSIL Top 100 upholstered furniture manufacturers have manufacturing activities outside their home countries. European companies show the highest level of delocalization, with a significant presence in Eastern European countries, such as Poland, Romania, and Lithuania. More recently, due to the trade tensions between the U.S. and China, Chinese manufacturers started to set up factories in South Asian countries (mostly Vietnam and Thailand) and, more recently, in Mexico, but also the United States and Europe).

Courtesy of CSIL Centre for Industrial Studies – Milan, Italy