A potential property buyer checks out a housing design at a recent property expo.(Provided to China Daily)
High prices are making space-conscious home-buyers spend more on interiors and custom furniture
Yang Hui, a 32-year-old Shanghai-based accountant, has been looking for a shelf that can store both his collection of manga model kits and his wife's collection of lipstick and nail polish sets, and other assorted objects, for a while now. The newly-wed couple needs it well before May. That's when they would move in to their new apartment.
"Finding the right shelf is the most difficult part of settling in a new home. The furniture needs to exactly fit the size available in the not-so-spacious room. We don't want to waste even a square inch. The shelf must function as a display cabinet as well that can store hundreds of small pieces. Also, it has to blend in well with the room's main color, which is chestnut. My wife and I have visited many furniture stores and malls, but couldn't find the right shelf," said Yang.
So, in late March, the young couple decided to get a shelf tailor-made for them from a furniture maker in Shanghai. The South Shaanxi Road store promised a perfect fit for 5,600 yuan ($868) but required a two-week waiting period.
The price appeared steep, but the couple agreed. They shared exacting specifications on size, shape, material, color and paint type. They even drew a sketch to explain their ideas.
The custom furniture firm's designer then used software to visualize the shelf which the couple found quite satisfying. Two weeks later, the three-month shelf-hunting mission reached a happy ending.
More and more consumers such as Yang prefer to install custom cabinets, furniture, wardrobes and fittings. Such products' market size may reach 160 billion yuan by the end of 2020, according to a report in March by the China National Furniture Association.
Given the current high property prices, consumers feel an acute need for optimizing residential interiors to improve quality and comfort of living. Tailor-made interiors also help make homes unique and personalized. Interior design has become "a fast-growing sector in recent years", the CNFA report said.
"Decades ago, almost everyone in urban areas used to live in an apartment that was close to his or her workplace. The space, floor plan and even the color of walls were similar and predictable. Furniture made by carpenters came in a limited number of models and designs," said Han Xian, a 42-year-old interior designer who works with Shanghai Dijia Interior Design Firm.
Han is one of the first-generation interior designers. He entered the trade around 1995 when the sector became popular nationwide. Han says consumers are now exposed to many housing styles and technologies. Modern supplies offer consumers a much wider range of choices.
"Customization can be sub-categorized into several modes, based on customers' demands. Some want a particular color, some others want a certain product in a specific size. Some like to give shape to a concept or theme like 'Mediterranean Holiday'. And some want the interiors to be functional, like rooms that encourage children to read, or a cat-friendly kitchen," said Han.
Francois-Xavier Lienhart, CEO of Lixil Kitchen Technology, a Japan-based construction materials supplier, said that experience-oriented production and solutions design are dominating China's higher-end interior design and custom furniture market.
"Take kitchen, for example. There can be thousands of details that need to be taken into consideration when designing kitchenware, stove, cupboard and sink. The cooking habits, dining habits, the number of family members and family structure will all influence the usage, floor plan and necessities in the limited space. In more affluent families with spacious kitchens, the place is not only a space for preparing food but a space for communication and quality time together. So, the safety of children must be embedded in every detail of the kitchen design," said Lienhart.
To reduce the risk of complaints against designers and suppliers, communication is key, which can produce good results in custom interior design, according to market experts.
Zhu Yuanmin, marketing director with Beijing-based Easy Home Ltd, said as customization of interior design and furnishing involves a lot of steps, it is essential to include every detail explicitly in the contract with the consumer, to ensure efficiency and transparency in the entire design, manufacturing and installation process.
Such a contract would also help consumers as it would pre-empt misunderstandings, said Zhu.
