PURCHASE MODEL FOR FURNITURE AND DECORATIVE ITEMS FOR SMALL SPACE CONDOMINIUM IN BANGKOK CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT. Due to the transition from a house to a condominium as the main residence and the higher cost of living, cost is the main concern when purchasing and furnishing a condominium. This research article will provide information on the purchasing model (planning, preparation and design) for furniture and decorative items for small space condominiums in Bangkok's central district, which is considered by consumers who have experience in purchasing or receiving information about the context before they and the person who plans to purchase the furniture and decorative items for their condominium.
Therefore, the research adapts the theory of "product design criteria" that influence consumer behavior to provide insight into consumer behavior and selection criteria for purchasing furniture. Compared to the traditional residential property (house), the Condo has an even bigger role than before. The rising price of oil has shaped the housing trend as it increases the cost of living (Supalai Research Insight on Housing Market in 2550, Manager Online).
The estimated market size for the furniture market in Thailand (year 2012) was 64 billion baht with four major players dominating: Index, SB Design, Modernform and Ikea. The interesting point is that Ikea entered the Thai market a few years ago and had caused a great change in the furniture and decoration industry by combining service and marketing strategy to empower customers to shop in their store. Ikea is marketing to shoppers by creating an attractive shopping environment, including a cozy and comfortable restaurant and food kiosk in the store.
The market for furniture and design products in Thailand's industry has grown rapidly; there are 3 types of players.
Problem statement
First is the big brand and mass production offering mass product, good quality at affordable price; such as Index living, SB furniture, Chic republic, Koncept, Ikea and Etc. Second is the premium brand and quality production, offering imported products with a well-known brand or a high-quality customized product; such as Studio128, Imported brand under the big brand and Etc.
Research question
Research objective
Research scope
Expected Benefit
LITERATURE REVIEWS & PROPOSED FRAMEWORKS
- Consumer behavior
- Perception of price, quality and value
- Design criteria: Small space decoration
- Proposed Framework
To define the different aspects of value, we need to understand the reason or purpose of buying furniture; what is the purpose of the use, who is the main user, where should the piece of furniture be placed or what is the style of the buyer. The level of importance of each factor will be ranked depending on the consumer's perception and the objective of buying. Consumer behavior involves examining the causes that explain customer behavior more than the investigation of consumer actions.
Considered at the macro level, the interests of the marketers lie in the demographic changes, society's values, beliefs and practices that affect the way the customers interact in the market. At the micro level, consumer behavior concentrates on the human behavior and the reasons behind the behavior. Regarding the idea of the hierarchy of benefit, consumer can perceive the benefit in 3 steps as follows;.
In accordance with the criteria of decision making, consumer perception will parallel price, quality and value. In this topic, the most important factor is the small space and the lifestyle of the new generation trend. The next part of the literature review will be basic knowledge; space management and understanding of the physical interior element that will solve the problem of room size and increase the benefit of its use.
But there are some exceptions: the accent wall can be dark or patterned just to create an excellent focus on the room and make the small space factor negligible. The goal is to expand the use function so that it exceeds that of the size of the room. Based on the above literature, I hypothesized that the mentioned factors may influence consumer behavior in selecting furniture and decorative items.
In addition, these factors are related to the decision-making in the items and the selection of decoration for a building with a small space. In the results, the consumer overview can show some data that reflects on the design and function of the room. The apartment is able to respond to the needs of city dwellers, regardless of the size of the room, but it is about the object of the building and the functionality inside the room.
METHODOLOGY
Sampling Frame, Qualification, and Size
The question of interview
Include the display card: Modern Mood, Modern Mood, Playful Mood, Black and White Mood and Natural Mood.
RESEARCH FINDINGS
- Convenience
- Price
- Quality
- Value
- Service
- Design
Furthermore, the interview showed that the size of the family is related to the size of the room. In contrast to the issue of the activities that condominium small space can not support, some of the respondents mentioned party area or group work area that tend to find problems in condominium small space. Since most of the new generation is the social majority group, functional furniture can solve this problem.
Still, some consumers mention the space for group activities and their specialized needs. To analyze consumer behavior or find the reason behind purchasing something, price is one of the most important factors and the source of decision making. This group constitutes approximately 20% of the total number of respondents; they seemed to invest more in their own room.
The differences depend on many factors, such as style, quality, room size, functionality and the requirements of the owner of the room. The purpose of the interview is to determine the level of importance of the criterion by which consumers made decisions when purchasing furniture. The value factor in this survey was measured by the question “the degree of importance that affects your decision to purchase a furnished condominium”.
The result shows that design has the most impact on the consumer's decision; The concept and theme of the room decoration should be clear and match the needs of the consumer. Function is a good point, but ergonomics is one of the most important components that consumers mention. Brand is something that is difficult to judge due to the high competitiveness of the mass furniture brand and the marketability support for each brand.
Therefore, the marketing strategy of each brand should reduce the value of branding and emphasize other types of value such as design, function and concept to be the main role of the company. One of the respondents mentioned that an interior design consultant is enough for the small room design. From the choice of 6 styles, half of the respondents prefer modern style with the cozy atmosphere, neutral theme color and furniture that softens the room.
The environment of the room such as lighting and the orientation of the room to avoid sunlight and increase ventilation in the room is one issue. The second topic is the function of the room such as daybed for guest room and extra area for party.
DISCUSSION & CONCLUSION
- Recommendation
- Contribution of your study
- Managerial Implication & Suggestion
- Limitation
- Future Research
The use of dual function furniture and the focus in the particularly important area in the room helps to control the budget. The important areas mentioned by the users in the interview are the living room and bedroom. The price to decorate the room small space is on average about 175,000 per room or about 5,500 baht per square meter. Small space condominium average 32 sq.M. usage areas per room).
Each piece of furniture costs approximately baht each, depending on the size and function of the piece. Located next to the living room and used for additional activities; such as an extra bed, extra space for parties, group work and exercise. Lighting makes your room look brighter and increases the volume of the space, while mirrors make the room appear larger and add more dimension.
Consumer behavior is different and difficult to predict due to the specific conditions of the research, as the topic only focuses on purchasing behavior and. This research found that the consumer living in a small condominium was primarily interested in the function of the area, but was quite limited by the budget. As a result, optimizing the required function and price is important for decorating a small condominium.
This research paper carries knowledge from many sources, including my bachelor's degree knowledge as an interior designer and master's degree knowledge such as research knowledge, marketing strategy, consumer behavior, brand management or even economic or financial part. From this research, my entire hypothesis is not in line with the research I have done because consumer behavior is something that changes all the time. Firstly, there are limitations in the sampling frame as the research is very precise in terms of the qualification of the respondent; the respondent must own the condominium small space in the Central Business District area of Bangkok, and the area must be between 25-35 square meters; Time is also a constraint.
Design perception and contribution is difficult to judge and summarize which style is better, as it is about personal taste and the style of each personality. To develop the research and meet all segmentations of consumer behavior in purchasing the furniture and decorative product, future research can target other groups of condominium users such as large family users in condominium, premium users in condominium in CBD area. This will not only benefit the furniture company, but it will be the model for both real estate developers and the end users, as this knowledge can be used to help in planning to decorate their own apartments in the future.
