Hot off the furniture press this week…

All eyes are on India as the online furniture market charges forward.    India is poised to see more people join the internet over the next 15 years than any other country and they all need to live somewhere so need furniture.  This largely unorganized furniture market, apparently worth $30 billion has come to be in the last two years alone with customers currently purchasing $500 million of that online which is the leading factor in US venture firms scrambling to get their piece…something about the prospect of one billion people online by 2030 sets the stage for enormous growth in e-commerce predicting that it will likely become a $300-billion hyper local, on-demand market and all signs point to cash cow!

Pepperfry having done recent rounds drew down on investor funds again to stay one step ahead of Urban Ladder and make sure they had adequate funds in the bank.   Here’s where things currently lie (in terms of dollars raised)

• Pepperfry – $100M
• Urban Ladder -$77M
• Fab Furnish – $30M
• and then there’s Amazon rumoured to be putting in $5 BILLION

It’s one of the most exciting furnishings game around! Catch more of the story here.

India’s mega fashion and electronics ecommerce site, Flipkart, also just added their name to the hat.  Guess who will be selling furniture as of today?!  With 700M raised in venture capital and a valuation close to $15billion, they are looking to clock 10billion in gross merchandise sales in the next year.  Furniture and appliances have great margin and is a logical way to do just that.   Customers can now buy over 10,000 small and large furniture products including beds, sofas, recliners and tables.  While large furniture will be only available for customers in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore right now (shipping nightmares!), rumor is other cities will be added shortly.    Delivery and installation is free.

Nordstrom Rack launched a home good section online this week. Just like apparel, you can return your purchases within 90 days in person at the stores.  In order to get free shipping though, you’ll need to spend more than $100, and items must be under 5lbs.

Italy’s culture minister announced yesterday that the country was investing €18.5 million ($20 million) to restore the floors of the Colosseum, with plans to use it for events and reenactments.  The Roman structure dates back to 72-80 AD, and while the floors were originally wood and sand, Italy plans to modernize the structure.

This is part of a larger push to restore the country’s great historic institutions; the Uffizi Gallery in Florence is also undergoing renovations.  Can’t wait to see the results