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WFH pushes demand for support pillows, protective eyewear

Published: June 5, 2020
Author: TEXTILE VALUE CHAIN

With work from home (WFH) and online classes becoming the new norm, people are purchasing items that reduce body aches and strain eyes that comes along with long hours of computer usage. From back support pillows, ergonomic chairs and protective eyewear many are seen buying them.

Eyewear brands Titan, Specsmakers, which saw only a fraction of their sales from blue lens, before lockdown — protective eyewear — are now seeing an increase in its share by 25%-30%. “It is not just WFH, but also due to the overall increased screen usage that is straining people’s eyes. There is also a 60% jump in demand for zero power protective specs,” said Pratik Shah, CEO, Specsmakers. Anxious parents are getting a pair for themselves and for their kids who have online classes and spend the rest of the time using gadgets, add retailers. Titan saw its share of blue lens rise to 55% from less than 40% last month. “Across metros, the number of people purchasing these (protective lens) has increased,” said Shalini Gupta, marketing head at Titan EyePlus. Besides eyewear, ergonomic chairs — with adjustable seat height, seat depth and lumbar support — are also seeing a spike in demand. Ergonomic office furniture solutions provider Humanscale is seeing a tripling in demand from its corporate clients. Not only are corporates buying such furniture for their employees, many are even providing allowance. Freshworks, Salesforce for example have allocated upto $250 per employee for setting up home offices. Custom furniture brand Woodenstreet is seeing a rise in demand for straight backed, adjustable chairs and desks from employees who are using their allowance for the purchases. “The demand has increased since May, when employees realised that WFH is here to stay and retail started opening up,” said Lokendra Singh Ranawat, CEO and co-founder, Wooden Street.

Other brands including Godrej Interio and Sunday Mattress have also launched WFH furniture from employees launching their own home offices.

Some working out of smaller spaces are making their beds more comfortable to work. Companies such as Wakefit, Wink and Nod are seeing a jump in demand for back support pillows, neck support pillows, and etc. “The mix of products has changed. Earlier people used to order more mattresses but now, the demand for accessories has increased by 40% because of the WFH trend,” said Chaitanya Ramalingegowda, co-founder, Wakefit.co.

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