E-commerce is no longer limited to apparel and other tangible goods but has now extended to other sectors. Real estate and home decor are two such new sub-sectors that are seeing an increasing influence of e-commerce in recent years.
According to a research report by HexGn, there has been a 32.6% growth in the amounts invested in the real estate sector in the period from 2014 to 2018. Two of the critical factors that are helping in bringing about a successful convergence of e-commerce and real estate sectors are the increasing fintech solutions and the use of AR/VR.
When you look at the year wise performance, 2018 shined as the year that witnessed the maximum amounts of investments in the e-commerce driven real estate and home decor segment and on the other hand the total number of deals was the lowest in the same year. The total investments in 2018 crossed $3 billion despite recording the lowest number of deals in the past five years.
The home decor startups that have adopted e-commerce have seen a spurt in revenue and investments. The segment is estimated to be valued at $62.36 billion by 2021. The online real estate and home decor industry share a somewhat symbiotic relationship wherein the growth of either one of them is helping the other one grow as well.
Let us look at some of the top companies from the real estate and home decor segment that have ventured into e-commerce.
Badi
Badi is an online room rental marketplace company based in Barcelona. The proptech startup uses AI and UX/UI to bring the best of technology to the table to help landlords and potential tenants connect. It is among the most excellent examples of convergence of e-commerce and the real estate sector at a global level. This top proptech startup in Barcelona offers its services in several top cities around the world including Roma, Madrid, and London. Badi was founded by Carlos Pierre Trias de Bes in 2015 and is the first proptech venture to use AI for offering real estate services.
Know more about this top proptech startup in Barcelona
Website: www.badi.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/badi
Twitter: www.twitter.com/badi
Compass
New York based startup Compass is a pioneer real estate company to have entered the e-commerce arena in the region. The brand plans to build the first modern real estate platform that will make buying and selling a property a more efficient and smart procedure. Ori Allon and Robert Reffkin founded the company in 2012 which now offers its services in 17 locations in America including Dallas, Chicago, Washington D.C, and Los Angeles. The end-to-end platform equips its agents with the best of tools and technology to help them offer much more to their clients. The company has crossed the billion mark, acquired four companies, and raised $1.2 billion in funding since its inception.
Know more about this top proptech startup in New York
Website: www.compass.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/compassinc
Twitter: www.twitter.com/Compass
Urban Ladder
Urban Ladder is based in Bengaluru and is a premium home decor e-commerce brand in India. The platform has a versatile range of furniture and home decor items that have been specially curated. It was founded by Rajiv Srivatsa and Ashish Goel in 2012 and is backed by prominent investors. Urban Ladder has raised $112.8 million so far. It is a pioneer company in India to enter the home decor e-commerce segment and one of the active players shaping it. The ease of ordering furniture online without having to worry about the logistics and having a stunning range of products to choose from has helped Urban Ladder create a strong customer base for itself.
Know more about this top home d?cor e-commerce brand in Bengaluru
Website: www.urbanladder.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/urban-ladder
Twitter: www.twitter.com/urbanladder
Havenly
Denver based Havenly was co-founded by Emily Motayed, Jessie Dixon, and Lee Mayer in 2014. It is a rapidly growing home decor e-commerce company that offers you interior designing services and products on its platform. The platform offers packages for upgrading rooms or entire homes; it has been a hit among its customers as the online platform offers all the information on its site itself in the most comprehensible manner. Havenly partners with over 200 vendors for the home decor products and has some of the finest interior designers on board. Its services are currently offered in New Jersey, Colorado, California, and Massachusetts.
Know more about this top home d?cor ecommerce company in Denver
Website: www.havenly.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/havenly
Twitter: www.twitter.com/thehavenly
Truss
Truss is a fast-growing online marketplace that helps those looking for a commercial space to lease. The platform connects such tenants and landlords through its intuitive platform that helps them complete the process of leasing out a space within a quick timeline. Truss is headquartered in the Greater Chicago area and is among the leading online real estate marketplaces in the country. The award-winning platform showcases commercial spaces that are less than 10,000 square feet in area and currently offers its services in San Antonio, Houston, Washington D.C, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Miami, and Austin.
Know more about this top proptech startup in Great Lakes
Website: www.truss.co
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/truss-holdings-inc.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/TrussHoldings
Top Countries with Soaring Real Estate and Home D?cor Industries in the E-commerce Sector
According to a report by HexGn, China is a leader when it comes to new e-commerce sectors that have been created as a result of the convergence of e-commerce and real estate & home decor. China has maintained this status as a leading country in the segment for years together with unmatched market size and customer base. It is followed by the US which boasts of a developing real estate e-commerce segment and a well-established online home decor industry.
China
The online real estate market in China has been booming in recent years with startups in the sector raising significant amounts of investments. Buying real estate online is a popular practice in the country as opting for property e-commerce firms offer a range of discounts and deals as compared to buying real estate offline. Sale of distressed real estate properties online is more common in China, and most of these homes or commercial spaces are sold through e-commerce platforms. On the home d?cor front too, China is proving to be a leader. The online home d?cor market was valued at $620 billion in 2016 and a significant contributor to the Chinese e-commerce industry.
USA
The online real estate and home d?cor segment in the US too has carved out a valuable niche for itself within the e-commerce segment in the American startup ecosystem. The increasing number of fintech services online and the rising proptech segment is helping the real estate industry grow with fewer agents.
The online home decor industry was valued at $10 billion in 2018 and is expected to grow at a steady rate of over 10% by 2022. However, the trend is expected to continue provided that the average disposable income for families does not fall.
Top Trends in Real Estate & Home Decor in the E-commerce Sector for 2019
The scope of e-commerce in the real estate and home d?cor segment is vast, and not all of it has been explored to the fullest. However, some of the trends that are expected to grow in 2019 include:
Use of 3D imaging for better images of the properties and the products to give a clearer picture of what a person is paying for.
Use of augmented and virtual reality tools to enhance the property and home d?cor buying experience on e-commerce platforms.
Access to a diverse range of fintech solutions that are safer and convenient.
It will be exciting to see how well the real estate and home decor segments will grow as an important sub-sector in the global e-commerce industry in the coming years considering the increase in investments in the last five years.