Abstract
The way consumers buy, care for, and discard their furniture reveals complex motivations that extend beyond cost and function. This paper examines the connection between consumer values, emotional attachment, and discard practices in determining the lifespan of furniture. Drawing on data from a mixed-methods approach that uses a survey, ethnographic observations, and object interviews, it analyses how consumers negotiate repair, justify replacement, and assign value to objects. It is argued that furniture consumption cannot be reduced to personal preference and market availability. Instead, it is influenced by cultural norms, consumer mobility, and access to durable goods. This paper proposes design strategies for extending furniture lifetimes and challenges fast consumption. In an age of disposability, what we choose to keep or discard reveals as much about society as about our homes.
Keywords
Fast Furniture, Lifetimes, Value, Consumer Behaviour.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.320
Citation
Furmston, K.E. (2026) Buying, Consuming and Discarding: Consumer Value and Furniture Lifetimes, in Simeone, L., Gray, C. M., Verhoeven, A., de Götzen, A., Bakırlıoğlu, Y., Zohar, H., Stead, M., and Buwert, P. (eds.), DRS2026: Edinburgh, 8–12 June, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.320
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Included in
Buying, Consuming and Discarding: Consumer Value and Furniture Lifetimes
The way consumers buy, care for, and discard their furniture reveals complex motivations that extend beyond cost and function. This paper examines the connection between consumer values, emotional attachment, and discard practices in determining the lifespan of furniture. Drawing on data from a mixed-methods approach that uses a survey, ethnographic observations, and object interviews, it analyses how consumers negotiate repair, justify replacement, and assign value to objects. It is argued that furniture consumption cannot be reduced to personal preference and market availability. Instead, it is influenced by cultural norms, consumer mobility, and access to durable goods. This paper proposes design strategies for extending furniture lifetimes and challenges fast consumption. In an age of disposability, what we choose to keep or discard reveals as much about society as about our homes.