In the past few years, Poland is becoming an increasingly important source of supply for the American civil furniture market. In 20 19, the total amount of Polish furniture exported to the American market was about US$ 265 million (Chinese mainland's figure was US$ 97.1300 million). Although it is 13% lower than the $304 million in 20 18, it still occupies one of the countries/regions of origin of 10 before furniture import in the United States. (See US furniture import and export 20 19: imports decreased by 8%, while Vietnam increased by 35%! 》)
Among the furniture categories exported from Poland to the United States, miscellaneous wood furniture, wooden bedroom furniture and wooden beds are the three major export categories, followed by wooden frame soft seats and metal frame soft seats. The other five categories with the highest export volume are: wooden frame soft bag seats, wooden dining tables, wooden kitchen furniture, metal seats without soft bags and wooden seats without soft bags. (See Table 2)
Poland's advantage as an exporter of furniture is closely related to IKEA's long-term supply. In order to better produce RTA (ready-to-use) furniture, the factory invested millions of dollars to purchase advanced equipment and realize highly automated production to meet the standards required by IKEA.
1 Seek direct channels for retailers.
In order not to be limited to large furniture suppliers (such as IKEA), Polish furniture manufacturers are seeking breakthroughs in other markets, such as retailers who also want to purchase directly. In fact, 2020 is a great challenge for furniture manufacturers all over the world, and Poland is no exception.
"In mid-March this year, it was almost an earthquake for Polish furniture manufacturers, and those usual transactions stopped almost overnight. The hardest thing is that this situation affects all export market countries at the same time, including the local market in Poland. " Michal Strzelecki, director of the Polish Furniture Manufacturers Chamber of Commerce, said.
According to statistics, the slowdown of export and domestic market caused the sales of Polish furniture industry to drop by 35% compared with last year, while Michal Blonski, founder and managing partner of TATFA (Transatlantic National Trade), said that the output of Polish furniture industry dropped by 50%~75% in March and early April. However, with the gradual recovery of orders after May, it has basically reached the level of 20 19 in June.
Two important participants in the global furniture production map
Polish furniture manufacturing industry is booming. According to the data of Polish Furniture Manufacturers Association, in 20 19, the country's furniture exports reached 136 billion euros (in 20 13, the figure was about 6.4 billion euros), and in the next two or three years, it will surpass Germany and become the second largest furniture exporter in the world after China. In fact, in 20 14, Poland has surpassed Germany to become the second largest exporter of wooden furniture in Europe. (See "Germany imports, Italy is fragmented, understand the European furniture market! ”！ 》
In 20 16, Poland ranked fourth among the global furniture exporters, and China, the first place, accounted for about 37% of the global furniture export market. The second and third places were occupied by Germany (7.2%) and Italy (5.6%) respectively. According to the data of the Italian Federation of Wood Industry and Furniture Industry, the export value of Italian wood industry and furniture industry in 20 17 years was 163 billion euros, with about 320,000 employees. Today's Polish furniture manufacturers are not only satisfied with the European Union markets such as the United States, Canada, India and the Middle East, but also eager to export their products to more countries and regions.
Although the export of furniture will decrease by about 25% in 2020, Poland still plays an important role in global furniture production. Michal Blonski, founder and managing partner of TATFA, said that through the rapid development in recent years, Polish furniture products have been able to meet the design and other requirements of specific markets, mainly due to the investment in production equipment.
"In the past three years, many customers from the United States visited the production base and compared it with factories in Asia. Without exception, they are deeply impressed by the highly automated, clean and orderly production site. " Tomasz Wiktorski, consultant of Polish Furniture Manufacturers Chamber of Commerce, provided a set of data: According to estimates, there are 80 large furniture manufacturers in Poland with an average of 249 employees; There are 3 10 medium-sized furniture manufacturers with an average of 50~249 employees; Small enterprises 1400, with average employees 10~49.
The total number of employees in the whole industry is about 6.5438+0.6 million. In addition, there are 26,000 micro-enterprises in Poland, employing about 200,000 people. These micro-enterprises are mainly supply chain enterprises such as wood suppliers. Among them, 80% manufacturers mainly produce civil furniture, and the other 20% are mainly hotels, restaurants and cafes (that is, HoReCa furniture).
3 The efforts of Benix and Gallas.
Benix is a famous Polish manufacturer of soft furniture, founded in 1993, and has been supplying the American market for the past five years. Despite the decline in output, the company can still maintain stable production under high pressure.
"At present, we are already running at full capacity, and the order volume in 2020 is higher than the initial stage." Nicole mazur, marketing director of Benelux, said. "At present, 1%~2% of the company's output is exported to the American market, so there is still a lot of room for growth. At present, the company is mainly committed to establishing cooperative relations with American furniture chain stores. We pay attention to both physical retail and e-commerce retail. "
Gala is another furniture enterprise in Poland with a history of more than 20 years. At present, its products have been exported to more than 30 countries around the world, and the company has been exporting to the American market since 20 18. The special situation in 2020 did not lead to the complete stop of the company's production, which ensured the continuous operation of the four factories. "We are not only responsible for our four companies, but also for all our supplier partners. The export business to many countries around the world allows us to have orders at any time. "
Gala soft-mounted furniture products
Since this spring, with the reopening of many retail stores, the company's business volume has increased by 30%. In order to maintain the positive growth of the American market, the company will attend the high-point exhibition this fall, although this may be affected by travel restrictions.
Actively seek to participate in the American market
BRW (Black, Red and White), a family business in eastern Poland, was founded in A.D. 1980 and started as a carpenter. Today, its products include soft bag furniture, mattresses, cloakrooms, dining room furniture and kitchen furniture. The company has 19 factories with nearly 9000 employees. At present, the company has been exported to 57 countries around the world, and has been exported to the American market since 20 10. Like many other enterprises, the company closed for two weeks because of the government's compulsory order. However, since May, the company has quickly resumed production and reached full capacity.
BRW company production workshop
Kamil Davis Kaczmarek, director of the company's export business department, said, "Orders in June, July and August have exceeded the level of the same period last year. It is our strategic goal to establish cooperative relations with large American companies. We hope to show our customers our production capacity, flexibility and rapid production capacity, provide our own designed products, or develop new series of products to respond to customers' needs. "
Another Polish furniture company, Szynaka Meble, was founded in 1957. At present, it has eight factories, mainly producing bedroom furniture, leisure soft furniture and office furniture for adults and teenagers. The company has been exporting to the American market for 10 years. At the beginning of 2020, the company maintained the lowest production capacity and mainly sold inventory products. At present, with the rapid growth of business demand, the company is working at full capacity. At the upcoming High Point Furniture Fair, the company will display its latest and best-selling product series to expand its business scale in the United States.
Production workshop of Szynaka company
In any case, many Polish furniture manufacturers show active concern and participation in the American market. Its advantage lies in its years of furniture manufacturing foundation, followed by its long-term experience in Europe and its market. For Poland, it is still a challenge to achieve the export value of US$ 654.38+0.36 billion in the same period last year in 2020. According to industry insiders, if all goes well, it will probably reach 4%~6% growth in 2020.