£750k British Sofa Brand is Worried About Consumer Confidence


Aaron Rudman-Hawkins
Aaron Rudman-Hawkins is a dynamic digital marketing expert and a driving force behind The Evergreen Agency's success. With a passion for technology and a deep understanding of the ever-evolving digital landscape, Aaron has become a trusted name in the industry.
Read Aaron's bio hereIn this episode of the Grow With Evergreen podcast, we had an insightful conversation with Nick, the founder of a premium furniture brand.
Nick runs the British Design Shop, a contemporary British furniture brand, which designs and manufactures all of its premium products in the UK.
In business for a little over five years, turnover has reached around three-quarters of a million pounds and 80% of their sales are now made up of sofas.
Evergreen has a long history in this sector, it is an industry we know well, but it is an industry that is facing some key challenges around:
- Customer Confidence
- A comprehensive channel strategy
- How to achieve maximum ROI from its digital marketing strategies
Our discussion with Nick shed light on these challenges and allowed us to explore some of the opportunities facing high-end furniture retailers in the current landscape.
Here are some of the key takeaways from our conversation:
Brand building
This is a crucial long term strategy for premium brands like British Design Shop as establishing a strong brand identity that can be different and defended is paramount. Nick emphasised the importance of establishing an emotional connection with customers and clear brand pillars, such as supporting local manufacturing and craftsmanship are key to their positioning.
Creating an omnichannel approach
While the British Design Shop started primarily online, they’ve recently expanded to physical stores. This highlights the importance of an omnichannel strategy, especially for high-value purchases where customers often want to see and feel products before buying.
Providing a consistent interaction between on and offline consumers was one of the key highlights in our home and garden paid media and marketing report.
Rethinking paid media advertising
Nick shared his experiences with digital advertising, particularly on platforms like Instagram and Pinterest. However, the conversation revealed potential opportunities in Google Ads that the brand hadn’t fully explored, namely:
- Search intent: Unlike social media, Google Ads capture users actively searching for products.
- Localised targeting: For driving foot traffic to physical stores.
- Higher cost-per-click tolerance: Given the high average order value, paying more for quality clicks can be justified.
Focus on retention
In challenging economic times, focusing on retaining existing customers becomes even more critical. Strategies discussed included email marketing, retargeting, and providing added value through content creation.
Understanding marketing metrics
The discussion delved into return on ad spend (ROAS) and how it varies by industry and product type. For high-end furniture retail brands, aiming for a ROAS of around 10 might be appropriate when factoring in lifetime customer value.
Diversification is key
Relying too heavily on a single marketing channel (like paid social media) can be risky. We Emphasised to Nick the importance of having multiple “levers to pull” in your marketing strategy.
Data-Driven Decision Making
Nick highlighted the value of understanding metrics like the worth of a store appointment or fabric sample request. This data-driven approach allows for more strategic marketing investments.
For premium furniture brands navigating the digital landscape, success lies in balancing brand building with performance marketing, embracing an omnichannel approach, and continuously testing and optimising various marketing channels.
By focusing on customer lifetime value and diversifying marketing efforts, brands can build resilience in uncertain economic times.
If you are a home and garden brand that is still struggling with a paid media strategy download our: Home & Garden sector: paid media & marketing report
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