Wood has taken on significant roles, across many industries and applications, for centuries. As such, the need to coat wood has existed alongside it. While recent years have proven somewhat tumultuous for the global market, the wood coatings market is still expected to reach $10.6 billion this year, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 5.6 percent, to reach $14 billion by 2027.
A Challenging Few Years Has Led to Market Resilience
Like many other industries, the wood coatings market was severely impacted by the onslaught of the pandemic in 2020. Plant shutdowns, alongside issues with shipments of raw materials and finished goods, impacted the market.
The furniture sector, which accounted for 41.5% of all consumption of wood coatings in 2021, saw severely reduced market demand across the globe in 2020. Global furniture consumption dropped by 10% that year and marked the first time in history that all four global regions experienced a negative growth slump simultaneously.
However, the wood coatings market did learn some valuable lessons during 2020 that led to new opportunities, which enabled the industry to adapt to unprecedented times. Taking the lead from the strong consumer home improvement trend, borne from social media and lockdowns, the industry began to develop a resilience to an ongoing challenging climate.
As consumers spent more time indoors, their spending habits shifted from entertainment to home improvements, allowing the wood coatings market to pick back up again swiftly towards 2021. However, the market wasn’t quite out of the woods, with supply chain issues persisting – not only as a result of pandemic-related shutdowns, but also due to weather and port challenges.
With the arrival of 2022, the industry began to improve once more, with demand rising across the globe. New building and renovation projects are now taking place, and the future of the furniture industry will support the continued growth of the wood coatings market.
Sustainability is Now on the Agenda
BCC Research has observed that the future of the furniture industry is expected to pivot towards more sustainable solutions that meet consumer demand. As such, the wood coatings industry is expected to follow suit and witness a flurry of cutting-edge innovations and technologies emerge. For example, top coats and finishes that have a higher resistance to scratches, anti-fingerprint qualities (even on matte or deep-matte levels of gloss), together with fireproof or speciality and anti-bacterial properties.
Interestingly, anti-bacterial solutions, traditionally applied on products such as textiles, are now being applied in the form of varnishes and finishes by pioneering wood coatings manufacturers. As such, these manufacturers are seeking anti-bacterial certification for products designed for wood furniture market segments – both indoor and outdoor use – under the ISO 22196:2011 international norm.
BCC Research Future Outlooks and Expectations
The market is seeing a wave of research and development, enabling wood coatings to extend their applications across the construction and furniture industries. Equally, with technological advancements improving the coating process and its applications, the performance and growth of the global coatings market looks bright. However, there are environmental legislations and an increasing number of health and quality concerned end users, which may cause challenges for the growth of the wood coatings market.
Despite these potential challenges, manufacturers across the wood coatings market are optimistic and see exceptional potential in the market. According to manufacturers, wood construction is becoming more popular on a global scale, and they are expecting increased demand for wood facades with greying glazes – a substrate wood that acts as a renewable raw material. It is believed that this could be more favorable than other substrates due to consumers’ preferences for more eco-friendly products.
Equally, the purchase of furniture via e-commerce platforms has increased recently and is expected to continue. Brands that took advantage of this shift to digital during the pandemic and began showcasing their products in innovative ways, saw an increase in their online sales in 2021. With the rise of furniture purchases through online platforms expected to continue, the demand for wood coatings is expected to increase too.
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