15 years ago, the furniture chains Kika/Leiner and XXXLutz were roughly equal in terms of their market shares in Austria.
Ikea was then – far behind – in third place. That has now changed significantly. While the Lutz Group’s market shares have continuously increased since then, those of Kika/Leiner have steadily declined. This was supported by surveys by market researcher RegioData.
In 2023, the Lutz Group (XXXLutz, Mömax, Möbelix) remained the largest furniture retailer on the Austrian market with a 34 percent market share, followed by Ikea with 19 percent and Kika/Leiner with 13 percent.
This essentially corresponds to the data from the previous year, although Kika/Leiner filed for bankruptcy for the first time in mid-2023. “Sales didn’t fall that much because the branches made a lot of sales,” said RegioData managing director Wolfgang Richter in the APA conversation. Although there is no updated data for 2024, Richter suspects that the market share will “slip below the ten percent mark” after the second bankruptcy of Kika/Leiner.
6.5 billion euros for furniture
In total, Austrians will have around 2023 6.5 billion euros for furniture spent, around one billion euros of which goes to the online furniture trade. In any case, Ikea is “best in class” online, said Richter. Ikea claims a quarter of all online sales in Austria, followed by Amazon and the Lutz Group. Overall, the furniture retail sector has an online share of 17 percent – compared to the clothing and shoe sector (30 percent), this share is still quite low. “That will probably increase in the next few years,” said Richter.
“Prospects for the furniture trade are not good”
During the corona pandemic, the furniture trade experienced an increase, “but now a lot has changed,” said the market researcher. The New housing construction collapsed, As a result, Austrians currently have to buy less furniture. In addition, people’s consumer behavior has changed – they are shopping less and shopping more personal pleasure invest. “Overall, the prospects for the furniture trade are not good, if not terrible. The pie is getting smaller,” said Richter, referring to the many bankruptcies in recent years.
In addition to the Kika/Leiner group, Interio, Depot and Butlers were also affected. Further locations would have to close or downsize, as Richter predicts. In the future, surviving furniture stores would have to try to reposition themselves through innovative concepts, increased efficiency and a better digital presence.