The production of furniture in the Czech Republic will increase by 11.3 percent year-on-year this year to a record 54 billion crowns. Revenues from the sale of furniture will increase by 13.9 percent to 44 billion crowns. This follows from an estimate by the Association of Czech Furniture Makers (AČN), which it published today at the opening of the For Arch and For Interior trade fairs at the exhibition center in Letňany, Prague.
“Although there are still concerns about the further development of the covid-19 pandemic and all the associated risks, as a professional association of furniture manufacturers, we expect a significant increase in furniture production by 5.5 billion crowns this year. The current risks are mainly the lack of production material and thus delays in the supply of materials and components. However, there are no excesses that there is a risk of production being stopped, as in the automotive industry, for example, ”said Tomáš Lukeš, the association’s secretary.
According to him, after a certain decline in sales of furniture on the Czech market last year, substantial growth has started. “It can be seen that not only Czech households, but also companies are taking advantage of the revival and buying furniture and implementing new equipment for their interiors. Concerns about the started inflation spiral certainly play a role. Concerns about inflation support consumption and investment, ”added Lukeš.
According to the AČN estimate, furniture exports will increase by 7.2 percent year-on-year to 36 billion crowns this year. Imports should increase by 9.8 percent to 26 billion crowns. The share of imports in total sales should be about three-fifths. “It is mainly the price war in the lower segments of the furniture market that leads to the sale of a high share of imported furniture. Often, regardless of the significantly lower quality,” Lukeš said.
The average price per kilogram of exported furniture in the first half of the year reached 98 crowns, with imported CZK 81.40. “Not everything cheap is of poor quality, but quality is definitely not free, and the same applies to services related to the sale of furniture,” added Lukeš.
The professional organization of the Association of Czech Furniture Makers has been operating since 1997. It has about a hundred members, 70 percent of them are manufacturing companies, the rest are, for example, schools.