With Maison&Objet taking place this September, the organisers have (once again) assessed the state of the international decor, design and lifestyle industry in its first barometer of the year and its 10th in total.
Nearly 1,200 retailers, specifiers and brands have analysed their business, revealed the challenges they face within an unstable international environment and shared their perspectives.
Sixty-nine per cent of those surveyed based in North and South America managed to maintain or grow their sales over the past six months. In the Asia-Pacific region, the figure was 81 per cent of respondents, while 63 per cent of European industry professionals reported similar or higher sales compared to last year at the same time.
Despite an economic situation that remains tense, with inflation continuing to weigh on consumer spending and, ultimately, traffic in brick-and-mortar shops, retailers are hanging in there.
Though the majority of specialised retailers of furnishings or connected items have experienced lower sales over the past six months compared to the same period last year, 28 per cent of giftware retailers and 30 per cent of retailers in kitchenware and gourmet products have seen increased sales volume. And this goes up to a third of them in fashion and accessories.
In addition, the majority of retailers who participated in the Maison&Objet survey (57 per cent) considered their current level of inventory to be ‘normal’. In terms of this inventory, they added an average of five new brands to their portfolio between October and March. Ninety-five per cent of retailers plan to place orders over the next six months and just over half of these (56 per cent) are planning for the same, or even higher, level of orders than they placed last year.
And that’s good news because 89 per cent of exhibitors are preparing to launch new products from now through the end of the year.
“After a disappointing 2023-2024, this year has started quite positively,” according to an English design studio. “All our indicators are up, with much more optimistic prospects and 2025 promises to be a good year for growth and change.”
Maison&Objet is held from 4 to 8 September 2025.
