The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate the willingness and feasibility within the furniture industry to establish a digital platform and marketplace for Swedishmade furniture, with a focus on sustainability. The study mapped the interest and challenges of implementing such a solution.
The final report is available to view in full, in Swedish, on the Swedish project page.
By combining qualitative methods with technical analysis, the project was able to provide a more comprehensive picture of the factors influencing the design and implementation of a digital platform and marketplace for furniture, with a particular focus on sustainability aspects. Interior architects expressed a strong interest in easily accessing and surveying sustainability information about furniture. However, they emphasized that the major challenge today is managing the reuse of furniture. Furthermore, they stressed that there are many other parameters that influence the choice of a specific piece of furniture. It was therefore crucial that the platform could also meet other needs that the interior designer has.
The results showed that interior architects had a strong interest in easily accessing and reviewing sustainability information about furniture. Furniture manufacturers were more interested in the platform as a marketplace to showcase their products. The interest from manufacturers to actively maintain the information was low. The project has identified that furniture manufacturers have a limited ability to share information about furniture digitally, as much of the information is shared through physical material. To address this challenge, the service Möbelarkivet (https://mobelarkivet.se) has been developed within the framework of this project. The service collects and processes information about furniture from manufacturers and strives to keep it relevant over time.
Möbelarkivet is seen as an important first building block to facilitate the digital flow of furniture information in the value chain. By offering a centralized and standardized source of furniture information, the service can contribute to raising awareness of sustainable furniture options and facilitating more environmentally friendly decisions in furniture choices.