The 21st century has brought in modern changes, not only in the realm of personal thinking but also in a professional setting. While our thinking pattern has transformed, our minds have become more open, just like the new office settings. Modern Office Interior Design

Old office cubicles have quickly replaced open offices in this new era. With little hiccups and several ifs and buts in the beginning, open offices have become a new trend. But you may be wondering, as to why people are more inclined towards open offices now? To know the answer, keep reading and find out how open offices have become the latest thing. Modern Office Interior Design

Open Office Vs. Cubicles

Here are a few reasons that make open offices a better choice than cubicle offices. Find out why more and more companies are adopting this work culture.

1. Cost-Effective, Efficient & Eco-Friendly: Open offices have minimal furniture requirements, which can be easily fulfilled with prefabricated furniture. It is one of the most cost-effective methods to build, revamp, or shift an office. The furniture is constructed at the manufacturing place and assembled at the worksite, thereby proving to be more profitable and time-efficient for both buyers and sellers. This furniture can be dismantled and used again at some other place without causing wastage and making it eco-friendly. Open offices are cost-effective, efficient, and eco-friendly as compared to cubicle offices, which require more furniture and handwork.
2. Maximize Floor Space: Open offices maximize floor space and reduce furniture overhead, which is a plus point for any business. No company wishes to overburden themselves with hefty furniture costs. An open office offers exactly the same and reduces the unnecessary requirement of furniture. Additionally, it can incorporate more employees on a floor, than in a cubicle.
3. Smoother Communication: It is believed that with open offices, people achieve a better sense of communication along with innovation, creativity, and collaboration. Open spaces allow employees to interact easily without any hindrance of a cubicle wall. They can communicate face-to-face and clear a query in jiffy, rather than walking to the person or sending an email. These office spaces make communication smoother.
4. No Hustling for Meeting Rooms: We often see managers hustling to find a meeting room and waste minutes on it. Open offices offer a chance to instead do the meeting then and there. It nullifies the demand for a room for short meetings and discussions. Innovative ideas can be discussed from the designated seats, thus leading to time efficiency.

 An open office culture will shine brighter in the coming years, given its advantages and eco-friendly nature. With the prefabrication of furniture becoming more advanced, several companies are jumping on this bandwagon. Moreover, its benefits to the environment and businesses are expected to provide more thrust to the growth of open offices, thereby providing more opportunity to the manufacturers.

Have you been waiting to change the interiors of your retail showroom or workspaces and still wondering where to begin? If there are things like this going in your mind, then a full-fledged retail furniture manufacturer is your one-stop solution. Retail industry has gone through a lot of changes and to get the right customer base they really need to think out-of-the-box, while displaying and selling the products. Retail furniture manufacturer

In a survey, where 26 leading retail fixture furniture manufacturers participated, it was found that the sum of companies with 100,000 sq. ft. capacity had grown considerably in the past few years, with the regular area fitted by each business almost doubling in the last two years. This implies that a lot of retails have larger showroom spaces, improved retail store furniture and more customer-friendly fittings and fixtures.

Why Are Full-Fledged Fixture Manufacturers In Demand?

There are numerous places wherein you can buy things individually, but a manufacturer dealing with all kinds of fittings is always a better choice than a small time fabricator. Let’s find out why.

• Save Time: While you would be spending hours travelling from one place to another to find the right stuff, a manufacturer who provides all types of fitting can save you a great deal of time.
• Long Lasting Products: Permanent industrial fixtures are planned for high-volume usage, so they are built to last. Provisional, movable production tools by small-time fabricators are stereotypically created for low volume runs, which implies that they are usually less durable and need to be disposed of over a period of time. Full-fledged fixture manufacturers have long-lasting products and are cost-effective.
• Easy Option: The ease of multiple furniture and fixture options in one place makes it easier for you to decide and helps you get additional discounts. You can buy wall mounts, shelves, tables, billing counters, chairs, racks, moveable cloth rails and so on, all in one place with a lot of variety available to choose from.

Pick Up The Best From Full-Fledged Fixture Manufacturers 

When you have a retail showroom for clothes, you have a variety of things to choose. With the below highlights you can pick what suits best for your showroom.

• Racks: Whether you need freestanding racks, wall-mounted racks, ceiling mounts, hangers or over the door and wooden racks, Autumnwood can be your one-stop-shop.
• Guiding Signs: As you will have multiple garments and sections in your store, adding directions can help your customers to locate the products better. Fall ceiling, dropouts, bright colored signs are some of the common options used these days.
• Comfy space saving small corner sofas, chairs and tables can leave your customers with a feeling of comfort, while shopping.
• Billing counters, customized according to space, with multiple shelves and drawers can be an add on for your store.

A full-fledged fixture manufacturer is not only a one-stop solution to all your requirements, but it also gives you a wide variety to choose from, with an assurance of the quality.

The beginning of the year 2020 marked a significant change in our lives, as we all were hit by the deadly COVID-19 virus. This pandemic led to a sudden shutdown of the world and everything stood still. Due to the pandemic, the priority of the world shifted to health and safety. The new social norms of health and safety made the economy of many countries crash and businesses were shut down. The retail industry in India also observed an instant collapse. Retail industry India

Retail Sector Coping With COVID-19

During the first few months, it was quite challenging to deal with the new social distancing norms and only limited stores could open which mostly included food, medical and necessary goods. With a lot of stores shut down, the retail sector industry saw very low customer base and at time zero. But with the progression of time, every sector picked up new ways to deal with the new challenge.

New Norms Adapted By The Retail Sector

• All retail stores, even the smallest ones, tried hard to deliver products at doorsteps. This not only ensured safety, but also helped them cope up financial losses.
• The second-best measure that almost every retail sector be it electronics, interiors, furniture and fashion industry adapted was allowing online availability of their goods.
• The retail stores used digital platforms for payments to follow health safety measures.
• Initially the retail stores had a hard time managing the demands of people, but with time ample supplies were made available and things were delivered on time.
• As the new norms of social distancing came in, a lot of retail stores provided customer support solutions via calls and mails. This made the job easy for both manufacturers and customers.
• The Retail sector did see a staff scarcity, but things went to normal soon as lockdowns and restrictions were uplifted.
• Most of the industries across the globe like India promoted Vocal For Local since a lot of people lost jobs in this pandemic and finances were hit badly.

Future Of Furniture Retails

In the current crisis, a lot of brands and leaders in the industry believe that the key driving force is eco-friendly furniture. The workplaces and stores have now started adapting to cost-effective furniture. These trends came into being after watchful learning of the market size, inclinations and business analysis. Some of these trends include:

• Reassuring flexible furniture that can fit in easily and allow easy movements.
• Furnitures that occupy less space and are multipurpose.
• With current trends of human safety, the staff across all retail sectors are being trained on how to deal with consumers physically, on call or via mail.
• The retail sector is trying to cope up with finances themselves. They have helped their customers by allowing easy payment schemes like finance and EMI. This has allowed returns of invested money by retail stores.

The pandemic might have slowed the pace of life and brought new guidelines, but the world has adapted to new norms of pandemic and has found new ways to deal with challenges. And the retail industry is not behind in getting accustomed with the new normal.

Future of Retail Market

With the growing needs of the customers and new trends, it has become extremely important to understand the future of retail. We no longer live in an era of being continuously brand loyal. Let us find out the new challenges the retail industry in Indian sector is handling and prospects of the same. Retail Industry in India

What Does the Retail Market Offer?

It is not that easy for any manufacturer to have a wide reach out to their buyers/ consumers. The retail market offers this opportunity to both manufacturers and customers on a common platform for better options. Another added advantage of the retail market is that it allows them to stock goods from various manufacturers and distributors at different price ranges. This also helps the customers to decide what is the best available choice, depending on their budget.

Do You Know Your Customers?

These days, more and more consumers value affordability over robustness. People prefer that instead of buying high-priced things, which would last roughly 15- 20 years or more they want more cost-effective furniture which can be used for a few years. This allows them to stay updated with trends.

Furniture builders have inclined their businesses and consumers towards green products and an augmented attention on sustainability. Retail areas prefer selling products obtained from manufacturers which decreases the environmental impact. Looking at furniture trades there is a variety of equipment that are being made with recycled resources or more maintainable wood such as reclaimed wood, bamboo and acacia etc.

Paradigm Shift – Futuristic Approach To Retail Furniture

Organizations are also moving towards more people friendly and flexible workspaces. Accordingly, cubicles or isolated spaces have become outdated and flexible offices where teams can work in assemblies of diverse sizes is becoming a preferred choice. In some cases, workstations are also shared for better communication. This type of planning helps to accommodate a shifting workforce, especially remote workers, which has become a new normal in this Covid-19 world.

Post pandemic the norms for shopping at stores have also changed a lot of things. The social distancing and sanitization have become mandatory and consumers are getting accustomed to this new normal. With this paradigm shift, the manufacturers are coming up with creative furniture designs and retail showrooms are coming up with new showroom interior ideas that are suitable for this new normal.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) – How Is It A Boon To Retail?

Most of us are already aware of this technology, wherein robots are being used to make things easier. The huge investments and risk to human life has been minimized by robots through AI, which is a one-time investment for industries. These can be seen in many stores, wherein people are guided. AI robots are being widely used in the medical industry. This is saving much manual effort in nutshell and almost every industry has welcomed this change.

The future of the retail industry seemed challenging in the early pandemic days, but COVID safety features and Artificial Intelligence will surely ease the process. This will empower them to reach out to populations across the globes and make their sales go higher.

Designing retail spaces can be a bit cumbersome at times, especially when interiors are concerned. With a growing customer base and global locations, it is essential to understand shoppers and modify your interiors smartly to give a new experience to customers while shopping and win your store’s recommendations from customers.

Merchandise stores have a lot to seek, when it comes to designing the right furniture, lights, walking spaces, accessories, windows, curtains and displays. All the hard work you put in reflect your brand value.

Section 1: Authority Zone

This part of your store is significant, since the first fifteen to twenty feet depending on store size is the first impression customers would have about your brand. While aligning products in this area, you must ensure that you display stuff that highlights your stock and give your customers an idea about your product range.

You can organize your products on apt sizes of fittings like hangers, racks or low floor tables. Make sure to add furniture that is convenient for your shoppers to pick stuff from. Give this area an additional highlight by adding some bright lights and flowers.

Section 2: Influence Wall

The next part of your store must include a wall which most of the stores label as “Influence wall”. It is a human tendency to move our heads to the right direction as soon as we enter a room, mall or a store.

Therefore, to influence your customers, you can add some bright color products on the wall with shelves, hang some displays and pictures that reflect your brand and add the top-selling products to catch their attention, spaced and organized appropriately.

Section 3: Small Furniture For Display

While designing your store it is important to consider the space you are using. Cloth rails and hangers are an effective way to organize things neatly for apparel stores. Racks and shelves can be installed on your walls to give a woodier look. Small tables act as multi-purpose furniture that can be added without using much space. The tables you use can have drops for storage of your items.

Customers tend to spend a lot of time, while shopping at your stores. So, ease their shopping experience by adding some comfy chairs, small sized sofas or tall chairs, whichever is suitable for the store size. Apart from the furniture, having the right amount of light is also important to see the products in detail.

Section 4: Guiding Signs

If your store is vast with extensive variety, add guiding signs that may hang from the roof and are easy to read and follow. The billing counter is the last part of your store and yet vital. So, accordingly you should guarantee to have satisfactory space and allow your patrons to place their belongings. You can also add quick selling handy products at this counter, which typically people have an inclination to pair up with the rest of the shopping. If done right, it will flash-up your sales.

These simple and subtle steps can make all the difference to your branding.

A classroom is one of the most important workplaces both, for students and for teachers. With ergonomic furniture, a classroom becomes a positive working environment with personal development and learning at the centre.

Now, many of us may not be aware of the term “ergonomics furniture”. So, let’s find out what it is and how can you create good ergonomics in school.

What is Ergonomics Furniture?

Ergonomic furniture is specially designed to support function and comfort for human use. It reduces the risk of musculoskeletal problems, back issues, joint pains, neck pains, arthritis, restricted organs and poor blood pressure. It is like creating a varied and flexible environment that supports the different needs and abilities of both students and teachers.

For furniture to be considered ergonomic, it must:

• Enhance natural movement and flow of the human body, rather than restricting.
• Support natural S posture of the spine.
• Easily adjustable to accommodate a diverse range of people.
• Encourage physical movement during the day.
• Put usability ahead of convenience or aesthetic.
• Reduce stress of joints, bones and muscles.

How to Create Good Ergonomics In School?

Do you know good posture, lighting, ventilation, acoustics and a flexible environment that creates variation, improves the well-being of the students and makes it easier to maintain a high level of concentration in them? Therefore, it is very crucial to furnish adjustable solutions and products for students and teachers.  

Choosing the Right School Desk

• Always choose a desk that has been specially developed for the school environment.
• It should be available in different height ranges for students from pre-school classes to high school.
• A height-adjustable school desk makes it possible to modify the desk to the right height for both sitting and standing work.
• Desktops with a linoleum surface or with hardwearing sound-absorbing tops like laminate or chipboard are a good choice from an acoustic point of view.
• Sound absorbers under the desktop in rooms with particularly stringent requirements for the acoustic environment can be a great idea.

Choosing the Right School Chair

• A right kind of chair is decisive in giving the students an ergonomic work posture.
• A school chair should be chosen to suit the student’s age and should be height adjustable.
• Always choose a chair with a tilt that follows the body, as it encourages natural movement, so that students feel better and can achieve more. 
• When we lean forward over a desk, our feet tend to swing backwards. Therefore, high school chairs should have a footrest both in front and behind the seat to relieve the strain.
• The footrest of the chair should be height-adjustable to suit the student’s height.

By choosing the right furniture for the classroom, it is possible to create learning environments that stimulate the learning process and make teachers’ work easier.

Reading is an incredibly important part of your child’s emotional and intellectual development and fostering the love for books is the cornerstone of education, especially in the early years. However, boosting an enthusiasm for old fashioned paper, in the face of endless screen technology, can be a daunting task for even the most talented teachers. 

According to a latest study, clever classroom designs and carefully considered educational furniture works alongside factors like colour, light and air quality to improve performance by as much as 16%. Let’s see how choosing the right education furniture can boost a child’s reading skills. 

Why Are Bookcases Important? 

Strong reading skills set your child up for success, later in life in many ways and bookcases play an equally important role. Let’s see how. 

• Organisation: A good quality bookcase is a way to keep your books organised. It makes it easy for students to find what they are looking for. Organising the books by subject or by reading level, keeping everything in place makes things easier for the children. It minimizes any barriers created through frustration at not being able to find what is being sought.

• Accessibility: Easy accessibility and freedom to choose a book is a crucial part of developing a genuine love for reading. Good quality educational furniture that allows easy accessibility to younger children to pick out a book of their choice without any additional safety concerns can add value to their reading experience.

• Added appeal: Different colours that highlight a bookcase can add appeal to what may otherwise seem fusty. Flamboyant colours like yellow or red will draw attention and inspire children to explore the shelves.

How to Install A Bookcase When Space is A Constraint?

A full-size bookcase may not be a practical option, especially when space is a constraint. In such a situation, choosing something like a mobile base unit can prove helpful. It can be used to create a book nook, where children can select books as per their willing. A flat worktop to display the books is another good way to make it easy for younger children to choose.

Good furniture, comfortable chairs and tables can make the overall reading area special. Also, it will make it easy for the children to keep books neat and tidy at the end of the reading session.  The concept of a clever classroom is deceptively simple and choosing the right educational furniture is invaluable in helping children garner a true love of the written word.

Arranging a retail store is both art and science, where it involves creativity and a lot of psychological insights. Let us explore some common tactics that can be implemented while planning the arrangement of your store. These pro tips can be of great assistance while arranging your store’s layout and merchandising.

Proper Spacing Between Products & Fixtures

You might have multiple shelves that are packed with merchandise and that is absolutely ok as long as you still give your customers their personal space. But make sure you are not giving your customers a butt-brush effect. This is a phenomenon where shoppers would abandon a product or display, they were looking at when they were bumped once or twice from behind.

According to a study, many shoppers, especially women, do not like being brushed or touched from behind, while shopping. They will move away from merchandise, they are interested in, so as to avoid it. So, make sure you have enough spacing between products and fixtures.

Using the Right Floor Plan

For any retail store, floor plan plays a critical role in managing the store flow and traffic. But the best part is there are plenty of store arrangements that you can adopt these days.

• Free Flow Plan
• Straight floor plan
• Geometric Floor Plan
• Angular Floor Plan
• Racetrack or Loop Plan

The choice of which one is right for you completely depends on factors like the size of your store, the products that you sell, and your target market. You might want to answer some questions before making a decision. What are your customers like? Do they shop in a hurry or take their time to pick up their products? Do they prefer self-service, or will your associates guide them throughout the store? These are some of the questions you have to ask when deciding on your floor plan to make a wiser decision.

Cross Merchandising

Cross merchandising with neat categories or departments is a great strategy. But you need to make sure that you have enough space to cross-merchandise different items. You can identify the products in your store that can go well together and put them in a single display. Viewing your merchandise from a customer’s perspective always helps. For instance, if you are a shopper looking for a particular dress, is there anything in the store that would go well with it? Many retail stores prefer to cross-merchandise a range of shirts and sweaters with matching clutches and purses.

So, now you understand how your store layout and merchandising can directly affect your store traffic, sales and even dwell time. Therefore, it is critical that you invest the time and resources in making sure that the look and feel of your store are on point.