The Polish Chamber of Commerce of Furniture Manufacturers (OIGPM) and the research firm B+R Studio published a statement reporting the results of the Polish furniture industry for 2023. It turns out that the value of sales of production by Polish furniture companies in 2023 amounted to 64 billion PLN, which signifies a decrease of 6% compared to 2022. This was reported by Money.pl.
The forecasts for 2024 are not optimistic for the sector. According to the report, everything indicates that this is not the end of the difficult situation in the furniture market. According to forecasts, the value of sales of production will at best remain at the level of 2023 (around 64 billion PLN). These forecasts translate into plans for further employment reductions. OIGPM estimates that the furniture industry will lose another 5,000 people in 2024 - full-time positions - we read.
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In the report, OIGPM reminds that furniture companies were forced to reduce employment to save factories and adapt to the reduced number of orders. From April 2022 to December 2023, 18,000 jobs disappeared from the furniture industry - full-time positions.
The Chamber emphasized that the value of exports also decreased last year - by 3%, to 62.2 billion PLN. In terms of volume, foreign sales shrank by as much as 11%. However, the sector hopes for a "slight" improvement only in the second half of the year, but much depends on how the market environment of the sector will look, especially the domestic one.
Acces wood materials
As indicated by industry representatives, the most serious problems faced by Polish furniture manufacturers still include access to wood raw materials certified by the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) for responsible forest management. As is known, in recent years, State Forests have gradually moved away from this certification, which is widely applicable worldwide, "which has raised increasing concerns among Polish producers in the field of wood raw materials."
The Chamber added that another factor making it difficult for the furniture industry to recover is the wood sales system introduced by the previous management of State Forests.
