| | OCTOBER 20218IN FOCUSHow Digital Transformation is Revolutionizing the e-Commerce Furniture IndustryBY CEO INSIGHTS TEAMUntil the year-end of 2019, evolution in consum-er demand and advancement in technologies were considered to be the ultimate reasons for changes and revolution in any industry. But, the sud-den occurrence of corona virus pandemic changed the tradition. Since last year, the pandemic has managed to transform how people live, shop, and interact with others. Same is the scenario for industries in the business world. Globally, the pandemic has affected business operations in almost ev-ery industry. Hence, e-Commerce plat-forms are adopting new technologies in order to keep up with consumer needs and offer a hassle-free shop-ping experience. In India, many e-Commerce furniture plat-forms are not only witnessing huge shifts in consumer be-haviour & frequently chang-ing business trends, but also since few years, the furniture industry has faced digital transformation challenges.According to an industry report published by Indian Brand Equity Foundation, the e-Commerce revenue in India is projected to increase from $39 billion (2017) to $200 billion (2026); growing at 51 percent annual rate, touted to be the highest in the world. It is no surprise that technology will continue to change the rules of the e-Commerce game. The digital natives consider tech-nology as an integral part of their lives, and they ex-pect a seamless omni-channel shopping experience. Consequently, online shopping and retail industry, in particular, have seen advancement due to technologi-cal developments such as cloud space and artificial in-telligence accelerating the growth of e-Commerce in India. The IBEF report further states that the Indian e-Commerce industry is expected to out-rank the United States as world's second-largest e-Commerce mar-ket by 2034, driven by hyper-local logistics, digital payments, digital advertisements, and analytics-based customer engagement. Let's have a look at how the pandem-ic and advancement in technologies are acting as a catalyst in changing the e-Commerce furniture industry in India.Augmented Reality: The furniture industry is an incredibly visual-de-pendent space, and customers wel-come every effort to bridge the gap between the online and in-store shopping experience. This is one of the main reasons why Augmented Reality (AR) has significant potential to disrupt the way people shop for furniture. AR can help consumers make in-formed decisions by giving them the opportunity to virtually 'try-out' furni-ture, by not worrying about bad decisions, and removing a huge weight from their shoul-ders before the big purchase. According to Google, two in three people say they are interested in harnessing AR to help them when shopping. Soon, AR will become an inevitable part of a buyer's path to purchase, espe-cially in the furniture industry.THE FURNITURE INDUSTRY IS AN INCREDIBLY VISUAL-DEPENDENT SPACE, AND CUSTOMERS WELCOME EVERY EFFORT TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN THE ONLINE AND IN-STORE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE
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