The Challenge

Once a cult favorite for its bold design language and expressive small-batch offerings, the brand had seen a pandemic-led growth spike—especially in high-ticket furniture. But with the return to out-of-home spending and rising competition, it faced tough questions:

Was it still seen as a design-first destination or just another furniture store?

Could it scale without diluting its aesthetic ethos?

And how could it better engage evolving customer cohorts—loyalists, infrequents, and those who had walked away?

Our Approach

We built an immersive ethnographic program anchored in the emotional meaning of ‘home’—not just what people bought, but why their homes looked and felt the way they did. Our approach included:

• In-home interviews across loyalists, infrequents, and lapsers—decoding not just purchase drivers but identity expression

• Digital and phsyical retail walks to contrast discovery and experience across the brand’s online and offline interfaces

• Expert inputs from store staff and interior designers to surface recurring user friction and delight moments

The craft lay in blending sensorial, aesthetic, and behavioral insights—positioning the home as both a functional space and a canvas for selfhood.

The Impact

The research revealed that the brand’s future lies in reconnecting with its original superpower: being a medium of self-expression through joyful design. This reframing is helping the brand clarify its purpose, rebalance its portfolio, and reimagine how it shows up across markets and cohorts—without becoming another mass-market décor player. The work is now a strategic input into shaping positioning, messaging, and consumer experience across touchpoints.