Nucraft
The challenges of entering new international markets
Research
Design Sprints
Strategy
The Challenge
-
UAE is home to nearly 36% of the furniture factories of the GCC, reflecting the growth in the domestic furniture sector and increase in demand for imported timber from global and regional markets
-
In spite of that office furniture imports satisfy over 80% of domestic demand for the United Arab Emirates
-
A potentially huge opportunity for the US office furniture manufacturer Nucraft
Despite success in other regions, the Middle East operations have not met expectations. Nucraft’s sales have not increased in line with the projected increase in demand. .
What factors are stopping Nucraft's sales mirror those of other similar markets ?
The Journey
Understanding the current state
We explored the decision making process for selecting office furniture in the middle-east region, identifying the decision-making unit for purchasing in this market together with identifying key influencers .
How does the market view Nucrafts products?
To gain reactions to Nucraft’s current product range we undertook user research with key stakeholders along with those of competing brands in order to establish a potential positioning for Nucraft that could be both appealing and motivating.
We also examined the supply chain to ascertain the role played by different organisations in the ecosystem
To ascertain the key brand values of Nucraft’s competitors
Outcomes
Supply Chain Issues
We discovered through stakeholder research and a Blueprinting exercise the current dealership relationship in the UAE needed a comprehensive review.
Rather than operate as 'box shifters' distributers needed to offer a better level of pre and after sales service
We created a service training programme and an accreditation system, unique to ensure service capabilities were enhanced and quality of service interaction were maximised
Interior design in an Arabic Market
Whilst the product range and overall quality researched very well with the target audience, a key theme was the need to support Interior Designers to better understand the product specifications. This was a challenge in the UAE as traditionally Gulf Arabs prefer arms length relationships. During a series of sprints we created a new bespoke sales programme targeting identified key specifiers of medium projects rather than high risk master planning segment.