In 2022, North America dominated the global educational furniture market. Furniture manufacturers in North America continuously focus on improving their overall business operations to meet distinct customer demands. Most domestic and international companies have a strong foothold in North America. The US marks the presence of major educational furniture manufacturers, namely Fleetwood Furniture, Herman Miller Inc, and Steelcase Inc. Increase in the number of schools, an inclination toward modern and ergonomic furniture, and the presence of educational furniture manufacturers are expected to boost the educational furniture market in North America during the forecast period.
Growing Demand for Modern and Flexible Learning Spaces
Educational furniture, including bookshelves, lockers, cupboards, desks, chairs, and storage cabinets, is manufactured using various materials such as wood, plastic, and metal. Several schools and educational institutes across the globe are increasingly adopting wood-based, plastic-based, and metal-based furniture. Also, the education sector of rural and urban areas is focusing on the development and renovation of school infrastructure. New approaches to building learning environments help create better student spaces and increase educational infrastructure efficiency. As schools move away from traditional, lecture-based classrooms, they require furniture that can be easily rearranged to accommodate different learning styles and group sizes. Thus, flexibility is another key driver of the educational furniture market growth. In response, furniture manufacturers are creating modular furniture that can be quickly reconfigured to suit the needs of different learning activities. For example, chairs and desks may be designed to be easily stacked and stored when not in use, or they may be designed to be easily moved around the room to create different seating arrangements, such as the Flex collection from Steelcase.
Flavor Masking Agents Market: Segmental Overview
Based on end use, the educational furniture market is bifurcated into institutional and residential. In 2021, the institutional segment dominated the market and is expected to register a higher CAGR during 2022–2030. The educational furniture market for institutional applications is widely growing due to rising focus of governments of several countries on educational infrastructure. For instance, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT), through its Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program, launched the 2022–2023 Infrastructure Funding Program in May 2022. The program was initiated to provide design and construction services for projects between US$ 300,000 and US$ 1.5 million in areas immediately around public elementary, middle, and high schools in Massachusetts.
Students spend an average of six hours each day in school. Therefore, educational institutes demand for safer and modern furniture designs to create a comfortable learning environment for their students. The rising need for aesthetically appealing, safe, and healthy learning environments for students is driving the growth of the educational furniture market. The increasing popularity of portable chairs, desks, and tables that allow classrooms to be grouped easily for interactive activities and projects and rearranged for individual work drives the educational furniture market.
Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Educational Furniture Market
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic forced governments of several countries to impose a domestic lockdown, which led to an immediate decline in the economy, slowdown in the global demand for trade, and disruption in supply chain. Subsequently, these factors hampered the manufacturing, delivery schedules, and sales of various goods. Various companies announced possible delays in furniture deliveries and projected a slump in the sales of their products. In addition, travel bans imposed by countries in Europe, Asia Pacific, and North America affected business collaborations and partnership opportunities. All these factors hampered the development of the consumer goods industry, along with restraining the growth of various markets related to this industry. Thus, major companies in the educational furniture market were severely affected in the initial phase of the pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic drastically altered the status of the consumer goods sector and impacted the growth of the educational furniture market. The implementation of measures to combat the spread of SARS-CoV-2 aggravated the situation. The shutdown of schools and educational institutes due to the pandemic caused unprecedented disruptions in the global educational furniture market. With schools remaining mostly shut for approximately two years, furniture sellers and manufacturers were severely affected. Furniture sellers and manufacturers have suffered from unbearable losses as they were unable to make sales. As a result, many furniture sellers and manufacturers faced severe financial issues. Moreover, increasing preference for online classes hampered the demand for educational furniture.
However, with economies reviving their operations, the demand for educational furniture started rising globally as producers and suppliers resumed their operations in full capacity. This factor helped them overcome the demand-supply gap. Moreover, rising vaccination rates contributed to improvements in the overall conditions in different countries, which led to conducive environments for industrial and commercial progress.
Flavor Masking Agents Market: Competitive Landscape
Some of the key players operating in the global educational furniture market are AFC Furniture Solutions Pvt Ltd, Fleetwood Group Inc, Scholar Craft Products Inc, Smith Systems Manufacturing Co, Knoll Inc, Haworth Inc, Vitra International AG, Virco Manufacturing Corp, Office Line Srl, and Creaciones Falcon SLU. These players focus on developing innovative furniture with ergonomic designs to cater to the consumer demand.