Retail market deepens on account of Universal Furniture entry

In the countdown to Christmas and the end of year, Universal Furniture Limited (UFL) aims to play big in the Nigerian retail furniture market as it opened its ultra-modern shop on Victoria Island, Lagos.

The company also plans to open more branches in the next one year, extending to Abuja and Enugu. Retail marketing in Nigeria has gained ground as more companies in banking, telecommunication, manufacturing and services operate retail system.

The shop offers office and home furniture and variety of styles, colours and texture – using the same high-quality materials as leading brand-name manufacturers in the UK, Italy, France, and Turkey, as it aims to wow and appeal to all strata of the society.

Antoine Moudaber, chairman of the company, told BusinessDay that the companies retailing model will create positive impact on Nigeria’s economy. “The more we open shops the more we employ more Nigerians,” Moudaber said, explaining he would invest more on branches, as the brand looked to close a huge gap in the market “by providing international standard furniture made in Nigeria by Nigerians for the Nigerian market.”

Also speaking on the opening of the shop, Kola Oyeyemi, the marketing director of MTN Nigeria, described the shop as “a beautiful shop and I love what I see in the shop, and the key issue is the uniqueness of the designs. People who love ambience at home are people who will find the designs exciting. It is not just a furniture but something that talks and creates a good environment for you.”

According to Layode Alui, a HND2 level student of Yaba College of Technology, the materials are enticing, “coming here has broadened my knowledge. Being a furniture builder too, I have really seen things that are different from what I used to build.”

His colleague, Babatola Ogunleye, also HND2 student, studying architecture, who is the president of students association in architecture, described the furniture as really amazing.