Today, many of us use products and services through subscriptions. While the first subscriptions appeared in the telecommunications and internet sectors, they now extend to an increasing number of industries.
Why has this way of consuming revolutionized our lives?
Subscriptions offer a number of well-known benefits that explain the growing number of customers for companies that offer them: exclusive access to content (media, information), the digitization of a product (music streaming), personalized offerings (Netflix), access to one or more additional services (Amazon Prime), surprise boxes (beauty or culinary), and many others.
So we asked ourselves: What benefits could we gain from a subscription in the furniture industry?
1. First of all, it's very practical
The very principle behind furniture subscriptions or rentals is the ability to use a product or service on a recurring basis, according to one’s needs.
What could be more logical than using it to furnish your home when you know you’ll be staying in an apartment for 4 months, 6 months, 1 year, or 2 years before having to leave it for various reasons?
And there’s no shortage of reasons: your first rental after spending most of your life living with Mom and Dad, your first internship, your first college exchange program, moving in with someone, your first apartment on your own, your first apartment with a partner—then you break up and start over on your own, your first job and your first desire for comfort, your first professional opportunity you can’t afford to miss...
Life’s unexpected twists and turns force us to be increasingly mobile (shout-out to Millennials and students), and we should have access to a simple and practical furniture rental solution to help us through these life stages. No more hours spent shopping for furniture, no more vans to rent or friends to convince that “yes, the couch will fit in your 206,” no more moving… in short, no more headaches!
2. This helps us save money
Another advantage of renting furniture is that you can access a wider variety of options without breaking the bank—and you might even save money.
With a consistent subscription plan, renting furniture allows us to save hundreds of CHF on a move, hundreds more on buying furniture (new or used), yet another few hundred for buying new furniture because the old pieces no longer fit in our new apartment, hundreds because we can’t stand the sight of those chairs anymore, or thousands of CHF because we finally want access to high-quality, designer furniture.
And yes, these days it’s also possible to resell your furniture. We’ve all been there—ending up selling our bed at the last minute (“Bed for 100 CHF due to urgent move, literally in 5 hours”), or having to eat on the ironing board for two weeks because we couldn’t turn down the offer to sell the dining table at that price (let’s say 40% of the purchase price…).
Being able to access high-quality furniture at an affordable monthly price ultimately adds up to significant savings.
3. It significantly reduces our initial investment
Let's not kid ourselves: renting an apartment as a student or young professional involves a high upfront cost.
When renting, we're talking about the first month's rent, a security deposit (equivalent to two months' rent for a furnished apartment), and any agency fees. If we also have to factor in the cost of buying furniture, the total can quickly add up.
Renting furniture allows us to spread out this investment and also to rent an unfurnished apartment, whose rent can be up to 30% cheaper than that of a furnished apartment (in addition to a lower security deposit). And this difference in rent can cover the cost of our furniture rental— jackpot!
4. It's eco-friendly
And let's not forget: it should simply be our top priority.
In France, the furniture market accounts for more than 2.6 million metric tons of furniture purchased each year. And every year, 1.7 million metric tons end up in the trash… The amount that is recycled is still very small.
And when we talk about consumption, we're talking about production. The more we consume, the more we produce, and the more we pollute.
Renting furniture is a first step, because it allows us to participate in a circular economy where the lifespan of furniture is extended. The more we participate in this consumption model, the more manufacturers will have to make their production increasingly sustainable (bye-bye, fast furniture). Welcome to a slightly better world!
5. Our tastes change, our desires evolve
The benefit of a subscription is the ability to adapt to consumers’ changing preferences and offer an increasingly personalized service.
And this makes a lot of sense when we know from our own experience that our tastes change over time. What’s the point of spending hundreds of francs (if not thousands) today on furniture that we won’t be able to stand anymore in a few months or two years?
Furniture rental adapts to our ever-changing needs because it also allows us to regularly replace our furniture with new pieces without wasting money.
6. It saves a significant amount of time
As millennials, we’ve finally realized that time is our most precious asset. And we’re eager for anything that can help us save it.
When it comes to furnishing our homes, we spend hours and hours searching for that rare gem. We spend hours scouring sites like Leboncoin, made.com, But, Conforama... Wandering around home decor stores, only to end up buying things we didn’t necessarily need…
Renting furniture obviously lets us cut down on the time spent on this tedious task. Not only because we have a catalog of pre-selected furniture (at least, that’s what we do), but also because the services offered by these platforms make our lives easier: delivery within 7 days, furniture that’s already assembled and ready to be set up in your home (no more instructions to figure out—we’ll do that for you), and no more worries about moving or selling your furniture: the furniture is picked up at the end of your subscription!
Hours and hours saved that we can devote to so many things that are far more valuable to us.
7. This lets you try it before you buy it
Renting furniture is convenient, affordable, sustainable, and quick, but what happens if we end up staying in our apartment longer than expected, or if we really love the piece(s) of furniture we’ve rented?
We include a purchase option with all our rentals, which is equal to the retail price minus the monthly payments you have already made.
In a way, we're giving ourselves the chance to try out a piece of furniture before buying it.
When the subscription ends, we might be tempted to extend it so we can enjoy the furniture we love for a few more months. You can do that with Swaap, too.
We've thought of everything.
8. We can access higher-end furniture
Not all of us want to—or can afford to—invest thousands of CHF in premium-brand furniture, even though we all dream about it a little. Today, fast-furniture generally gives us access to designer furniture, though its comfort doesn’t always meet our expectations (and the quality isn’t always up to par—but maybe that’s on purpose, to get us to replace our furniture more often…?).
And yet, we should have access to furniture that combines design, comfort, and durability. This is another major advantage of furniture rental, which allows us to access these products through an affordable monthly subscription.
9. You finally feel at home
We know this: when we rent an apartment, we always have a hard time feeling at home, because we know it will be temporary—even when the end date hasn't been set yet.
For the sake of simplicity, we often opt for furnished apartments. But the furniture is very often outdated and uncomfortable. We are therefore willing to pay the price of convenience by sacrificing our sense of comfort at home.
Unfortunately, given the times we’re living in, we’re spending more time at home. So here at Swaap, we’ve made it our mission to ensure that everyone can at least feel good in their own home, without sacrificing comfort or anything else. And there’s something for every taste (and every budget).
10. The beginning? You don't have to do anything anymore
A constantly evolving platform designed to ensure the best possible user experience. A curated selection of high-quality furniture, carefully chosen with a focus on design, durability, and your comfort. Delivery, assembly, and installation of your furniture within 14 days. You can choose to return the furniture at the end of your subscription, extend your subscription, purchase your favorite pieces, or swap them out to try something new.
All this with just a few clicks. So you can focus on yourself and your personal goals, without having to worry about the hassles of furnishing your home or moving. So you, too, can feel right at home. That is our deepest wish here at Swaap, and you can count on us: we’ll do everything we can to make this happen.
