Commissioning custom furniture and fittings can be complex, expensive, and time-consuming, making it unattainable for many Kiwis. As the costs associated with building and renovating homes rise, most people end up settling on furnishing their spaces with off-the-shelf pieces that may do for now but are unlikely to last long-term. Additionally, buying furniture that you know will need to be replaced in a few years means you create less of a connection with it; let’s be honest, that Kmart shelf is more likely to end up in the landfill than become an heirloom for future generations.
So, how do you bridge the gap between the luxury world of custom furniture and fittings with the accessibility of off-the-shelf retailers? Kelly Withers of Consilio Creations has a solution.
Drawing on his background in tech and innovation, Kelly and the team at Consilio Creations initially started as a furniture e-retailer with a custom furniture design system that made commissioning custom furnishings easy and accessible. However, after seeing the value their customisers could provide artisan designers and manufacturers, the business has decided to pivot.
Streamlining the design process with a custom design platform
“What we’re doing is working with businesses — artisan designers and manufacturers of furniture, fittings and decor — to understand their design process, construction techniques, manufacturing constraints, and materials, and then creating a Customiser that can be inserted into their website,” Kelly explains. “The Customiser can produce anything from a detailed email, to end cut files that can be sent directly to a CNC machine, depending on how the business operates.”
The Customiser allows a customer to choose from a selection of materials, styles, dimensions, hardware, and finishes to create their custom furnishings, with live and accurate 3D renders and pricing to give the customer a clear idea of what they’ll receive and how much it will cost before they submit it to the designer.
“This essentially removes a lot of the ‘top of the sales funnel’ friction where people know they want something specific, but there’s still a lot of back and forth around design, materials, and pricing that can be frustrating for everyone involved. Being able to see your design visually and have it priced in real-time not only speeds up the process and removes a lot of admin and design time, but it also increases the engagement and buy-in of the client, ensuring that the result is exactly what they want.”
Known as the ‘Ikea effect’, studies have shown that people who assemble their furniture place a higher value on it. Similarly, creating something uniquely yours evokes a personal connection, and ensures that it is perfectly suited to your lifestyle and aesthetic, meaning you are more likely to hold on to the piece for years to come. Not only does customising your furniture reduce waste — it also helps you save money otherwise spent on replacements.
Though the benefits are clear, the ability to customise your surroundings has been limited, as many smaller designers and manufacturers don’t have the resources to scale their production or automate their order processes. However, with the Consilio customiser system, small businesses don’t have to worry about the time-consuming back and forth with a client that eventually cancels the order once they see the price, or reworking a design that is never quite what the client wants.
“Our goal is to help small, artisan designers and manufacturers stay competitive in the current market. By reducing friction in the design and order process, reducing the time and cost of the early phases of production, they can focus on the carpentry and manufacturing side of things while we focus on leveraging our tech to streamline the system.”
Interested in the Consilio Creations customiser platform? Get in touch with the team today to learn more.