The Future Of Patio Furniture

Since the beginning of time humans have been making furniture one way or another. We've gone from using stone and wood, to plastic and carbon fiber with microfiber or Sunbrella cushions. During this time furniture design has been mainly dictated by style, however as technology starts to sip into the home environment (with internet of things) Function is going to become increasingly important.

Now when we talk about patio furniture, function has been a factor of sorts for example: your chaise lounge was made to lounge in the sun, swivel rocker chairs were made to rock outside, yet all these had to be made with water resistant fabrics and durable materials that could satisfy the function of backyard relaxation.

With function and design in mind, heres 3 ways in which the patio furniture industry is going to change in the near future:

Self-replaceable patio furniture
Imagine being able to get a text message or notification that informs you when your patio furniture is due for replacement? Or better yet, choosing to be notified when it needs new floor caps or webbing for example?

Well, in the near future manufacturers could install sensors inside your patio furniture that allow them to know when to replace an item. Or better yet send a brand new patio sofa or chaise lounge automatically to your home. This will mean that your patio furniture can stay fresh and looking brand new always.

Modular customizable patio furniture
More and more we're seeing modular furniture pieces that are easy to move and customize as needed. We foresee that this trend will continue to gain strength in the patio furniture industry. In the future, patio furniture will be modular and easy to move around for different combinations in your backyard. Consumers want options, specially with most families moving more often, the same patio furniture from home A will have to be rearranged into home B.

Virtually design your backyard
Weve all heard about Augmented Reality at this point. From Ikea to Williams-Sonoma, augmented reality apps for retail are gaining ground. Augmented realitys ability to show what furniture will look like in a customers home and even test if it will fit in a certain space is changing the game.

In the near future this technology will become mainstream and customers will be able to walk into a store and design their backyards with augmented reality before actually buying any furniture. This way they will be able to really select the patio furniture pieces that go well with the space and home design. We expect this change to happen in the next 5 years! Yikes!

Robotic patio furniture
Robotic furniture is a brand new concept that innovating start ups such as Ori are just starting to develop. Imagine a patio chair that adjusts to the shade of your umbrella so that you always sit in the shade? Or a chaise lounge that self dries as you jump in the pool again so theres no wet fabric when you come back? This futuristic patio furniture could become the norm sooner than we think! 

Well there you have it, the future of patio furniture. Happy New Year 2018 folks!