Designer furniture in vogue

Just as middle-class consumers are showing special liking for designer and branded clothes, more Nepalis are exhibiting growing fondness towards designer and branded furniture products.

Consumers are adorning their homes with sofa sets, coffee tables and designer cupboards either crafted by local artisans or imported from countries like Thailand, Malaysia and China among others.

“Designer and branded furniture products have been showing an increase in demand by almost 20 percent every year for last three to four years,” said Baburaja Shakya, supervisor at Craftman Furniture, located at Sitapila.

Shakya said with the changing lifestyle and new dimensions in housing sector, household furniture has undergone a phenomenal evolution. According to Shakya, today, there is a high demand for locally designed furniture in Western countries as well as in the local market.

With quality and design being the sought-after elements lately, furniture sellers are largely depending on designers with a knack of latest furnishing trends.
Furniture manufactures as well as importers such as Craftman, Q and U, S.B. Furniture, Alternative Furniture Industry, and Furniture Land, among others are vying for furniture designers to exploit the local market of domestic and international furniture brands, particularly for their knowledge of design trends and the specific ability to meet the needs of manufacturers and customers.

"Priorities have changed along with functions and this is why the people now go in for designs and shades,” says Ajanta Maharjan, a designer at S.B. Furniture, adding that urban Nepalis are paying as much attention to the interiors of their homes as they do to the exteriors. What is out is the substandard furniture made from unseasoned local hardwood. What is in is glossy furnishings with steel, glass and synthetic wood, among others.

Amid the increasing popularity for designer furniture, migration of trained craftsmen stands as a challenge for local furniture manufacturers to compete with imported designer furniture. Durga Bahadur Shrestha, Chairman of Homely Furniture - the seller of Q and U Chinese furniture - says, "After working for a year or two and learning the skills, most just go abroad. Strikes by the labors are another major challenge.”