These 7 Types of Design Businesses Have Actually Thrived During the Pandemic—Here’s Why

Original article posted at Architectural Digest by Tim Nelson.

The world of design wasn’t spared the pandemic’s dire economic impact, but our increased time at home was a hidden blessing for some businesses ready to capitalize on shifting demands —especially consumers’ increased willingness to shop online. There are certainly useful lessons we can learn from these seven types of companies, which have managed to successfully pivot and thrive in these strange times. Here is how various design sectors fared over the past year.

Online interior design services found their niche

A lot of individuals knew they wanted to do something to refresh their homes but weren’t sure where to turn. Enter digital interior design platforms, which benefited from both clients’ increased willingness to make big design decisions virtually and the challenges that came with reorienting their dwellings to the new normal.

“Most homes were not set up for all that we were asking of them, especially remote working and learning spaces, so having access to real designer expertise can make a significant impact,” says Susie Doyle, vice president of operations at interior design platform Decorist. “Customers are not just coming to us for the big design moments but also for help with little updates throughout their homes to make it more livable, functional, and to feel more complete.”

According to Doyle, that demand led to a 90% increase in the business’ traffic in 2020, which began picking up steam in the middle of the year. She says Decorist’s new customers have been increasingly “willing to invest in quality, core products,” like tables, chairs, and sofas, while also upping spending on art and other accessories.

Big retailers saw big gains

All the new furniture we bought had to come from somewhere, and familiar retailers stood to benefit. In particular, online-focused brand Wayfair pounced on new opportunities. On its February 25, 2021, earnings call, the company announced a total net revenue of $14.1 billion for 2020 (up an astounding 55% from 2019) and $4.1 billion in annual gross profit.

A year full of appliance purchases and DIY projects was also a boon for Home Depot, whose annual sales increased 19.9% to total $132.1 billion for the 2020 fiscal year. In addition to an increase in e-commerce shopping (evidenced by a soaring 83% year-over-year increase in fourth-quarter online sales), customers also looked to Home Depot for bigger purchases than they had in the past. President Ted Decker told CNBC that transactions exceeding $1,000 saw a 23% bump for the year.

Designer marketplaces were in demand

It wasn’t just Wayfair and Home Depot that absorbed increased furniture demand. Digital design marketplaces Chairish and 1stDibs, both known for well-curated selections aimed at discerning shoppers, successfully tapped into the collective desire to make homes feel new with just a few clicks. Unique pieces sold for upwards of $20,000 via Chairish, speaking to customers’ newfound willingness to pull the trigger on expensive purchases sight unseen.

So what were people buying? 1stDibs’ data around year-over-year category increases suggests lighting saw a surge in interest. “People have been investing in feathering their nests rather than on other discretionary purchases,” 1stDibs CEO David Rosenblatt observes. “Courtesy of Zoom, personal spaces now often function as public TV studios, and their occupants are also focused on improving their presentation.”

Fresh coats had paint companies seeing green

After staring at the walls of our homes for months, it’s no great shock that many of us decided those surfaces could use new paint. For example, retail customers propelled Sherwin-Williams to $18.36 billion in net sales for 2020, representing a 2.6% increase from 2019 and a record annual haul for the 155-year-old paint and coating company.

So what shades are selling? Farrow & Ball CEO Anthony Davey cites growth in “deeper, richer, more saturated colors” like their Hague Blue and Green Smoke shades, both of which saw sales increases of 250% in 2020. The British paint manufacturer also noted a newfound consumer emphasis on more durable finishes such as its Modern Emulsion line, which Davey says “is very consistent with homes becoming a ‘new frontier’” where work, school, and relaxation collide.

Many did more than just dream of new homes

After an early period of panic in the spring, the real-estate market was red hot for most of the year, as low mortgage rates and work-from-home freedom pushed home prices upward across the country.

A major beneficiary of that surging interest? Online real estate platforms like Zillow, which saw 9.6 billion website and app visits in 2020, an increase of 1.5 billion from 2019—a boost so significant that even Saturday Night Live chose to parody people’s newfound obsession with the site. While there were far more browsers than buyers, revenue from Zillow Offers, which sees the platform brokering the sale of homes directly, reached $1.7 billion in 2020, up 25% from the previous year. That translated to 5,337 homes sold directly by and through Zillow last year.

Office furniture made it work with home offices

While the fortunes of office-furniture retailers who depended on commercial clients were certainly mixed, those who honed in on the booming home-office market could partially mitigate losses. Herman Miller’s Q2 report for the 2021 fiscal year mentioned a 270% growth in that category year over year, with quarterly retail orders up 41% from where they were in the prior fiscal year.

The company opened retail-focused stores in both New York and Los Angeles (with additional locations planned for 2021) to better tap into that demand, letting prospective customers try out their home-office upgrades before they buy. “We accelerated the development of our new concept stores in direct response to new customer demands,” Herman Miller retail president Debbie Propst said in a November press release, noting that the stores come at a time “where home-office furnishings are more important than ever.”

Furniture rentals offered flexibility

Renting seems to hold greater appeal to consumers than ever in these uncertain times. That may explain why furniture rental startup Feather was able to expand its services from the New York area and California into the Washington, D.C.; Baltimore; and Richmond, Virginia, markets in 2021.

“Since March of last year, we’ve seen a significant uptick of interest in furniture rental over traditional ownership,” says Jay Reno, CEO of Feather. “There’s greater uncertainty among many consumers about where they’ll be in three months, six months, or a year, and they’re looking for services that can be as flexible as they need them to be.”

Feather’s data on trending rental categories is a microcosm of how the pandemic has pushed people to transform their homes into spaces of both productivity and comfort. The company has seen a 400% increase in demand for home-office items (with a specific focus on standing desks, bookshelves, and task chairs) as well as a 260% increase in “cozier” furniture such as sofas, chairs, and beds. Taken together, it speaks to our new, homebound ideas of work-life balance.