Jens Ellingsen Ekornes started producing springs for mattresses and furniture in Sunnmøre, Norway in 1934. He had just three employees at the time. It was his drive for success that made him want to diversify and he decided to make mattresses as well. Jens did not like the original mattress that was made of heavy steel springs that was fitted onto bedframes with poor lacing. He wanted to produce a mattress that was lighter, more comfortable, and utilized coils on both sides. This led him to joining forces with his foreman Nils Sjørholt and together they made the first Svane mattress. The two increased the size of their factory and enlarged their workforce, hence, the beginning of Ekornes and the success of their Norwegian brand.
Stressless is Ekornes’ line of recliners that was introduced in 1971. It was advertised as a revolutionary recliner that was designed to meet customer’s every need in terms of movement and support when seated. They have patented technology in glide movement that contours to the slightest motion and a Plus technology that adjusts to lumbar support and different neck positions. Their motto is, “[t]he innovators of comfort” and they are known as the top ultimate recliner.
The first Stressless recliner hit the market as the first real TV chair. Users can lean backwards, rest in a forward position, and even turn to face the other direction. Their selling point was the sliding system, which was unique back then. By 1980, the Stressless recliners became an international success, accumulating over 100 million Norwegian Kroner in sales. In 1983 Stressless was awarded a top Norwegian Export Prize for exceeding exports of over 100 million chairs. In 1991 Ekornes changed its strategy and produced since then the most comfortable swivel chair as it introduced its patented Plus system which lets users adjust the headrest and lumbar support, making it a recliner where you can watch TV and read a book in. In 1993, the Stressless sofa was debuted as a sofa that moves with each position of an individual that sits on it. The claim was that “[i]n a Stressless sofa, every seat is a Stressless.”
When 2004 rolled around, Stressless increased their factory size by 30,000 square meters in Ikornnes. This led it to become one of the most advanced factories in the world and they also redesigned their Stressless logo. Today, the organization has six factories in Norway and one in the U.S. for production. As of December 31, 2013, the company had nearly 1,600 employees.
The company’s mission statement is: Ekornes shall be a leading brand name supplier of home furniture in domestic and international markets, which stands for quality and comfort.
PLACE
The Stressless line can be found on retail websites and in the showrooms of company-owned and retail furniture stores worldwide. Customers can go to the Stressless website and enter the zip code of where they wish to shop for the furniture and it’ll give a search result of the nearest store(s). The website also offer a catalog of the furniture line.
Company
Background
Stressless
in China
As part of the expansion of the Stressless brand to untapped markets, the first sale in China was in 2007 at Stressless’ first store. This store is located in Shanghai; this was the first of five stores to be opened in the city. In total, Stressless opened 33 stores in China including Hong Kong, Mongolia and, Tibet.
They first entered the Asian market through exclusive agreements with importers in China, Hong Kong, Korea, Indonesia, and India. In China, they made an exclusive agreement with Shanghai Yun Sheng Trading Co., Ltd and made them a general agent for Ekornes Stressless in China. The chairman of the board, Dr. Ying Kang is Ekornes’ representative in China. All markets are served from the regional office in Singapore. Nowadays, Ekornes is transforming from their previous business model with an agent in China to establish their fully owned subsidiary. The plan is for these changes to happen in April 2015. This decision has led to a significant decrease in orders from the current importers. Orders were down approximately 14% from 2012 to 2013. The regional sales was down approximately 60 % between 2013 to 2014 and NOK 63 million. However, this decrease was expected due to their decision to move away from the previous agreement with the importer.
The main reason as to why they have chose to transform the operations in China is to make the business model more similar to what they do in most other countries. Also, low volumes and profitability in China is partly due to high cost with many links in the supply chain. They are now aiming to give customers lower prices and better distribution, and therefore higher volume. They will also increase the number of retailers in China and not focus primarily on just stores/showrooms as before.
Pictures from Chinese living rooms:
The Chinese furniture market is extremely vast. Therefore, it is hard to say what typical “Chinese” preferences are when it comes to furniture. Below is a picture from Chinese living rooms with different preferences. The first four living rooms have a more traditional, but luxurious style than the last three. For high-income homes, there is an attraction for a more traditional look with usage of gold and dark wood. Stressless showcases this in their store by making a natural habitat for the high-end furniture in their Shanghai showroom.
Like most cultures, many Chinese people like to show off their success. The upper class is growing as the population becomes more affluent. They wish to invest in their homes to show their wealth and success to friends, family members, and business contacts. This, as well as the 45 to 54 year olds still account for the highest income in China. Stressless claims to “sell furniture to different target groups”. Stressless’ timeless design is likely to appeal to the age group that have the highest income and prefer traditional design[1].
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