Things are in motion at Bofred, and one major piece of news is that Christa will be moving back to South Africa before the end of the year to rejoin the Bofred team in person. On the business side, things are going well, helped in large part by a strong collection launch during Furniture Week, which drew high engagement and plenty of foot traffic.

Since the consulting assignment, the team has been working to a twelve-month marketing plan. Furniture Week and March were busy stretches, but social media interaction softened a little in April as the season changed.

For now, Carla and Christa have chosen not to bring on a full-time marketing hire, given the economic climate, and are instead planning bigger campaigns at the end of the year. One of the most immediate wins from the students was a new pricing tool, which Bofred put to use straight away. With no dedicated finance background in a small team, the tool has given them a more professional and structured way to think about pricing.

They are using it to benchmark products against both local and international markets. Interestingly, the research suggested their handmade pieces could command higher prices, but Carla and Christa did choose to keep local increases modest in order to stay competitive within a sensitive South African economy.

International sales, meanwhile, have slowed noticeably amid geopolitical tensions and a 20-30% rise in shipping costs. Because production runs to a six-week timeline, shipping quotes are often out of date by the time pieces are ready. In response, the team is shifting focus toward smaller, more manageable items that can be sent more affordably by air freight.

Throughout, Bofred continues to push creative boundaries with new materials and sculptural designs to hold its niche locally.

Carla and Christa closed with a warm message to the Imperial College team. Even though they tend to be private about the business, they found the collaboration to have been genuinely helpful, and are grateful that the documents and structural tools provided are now part of their day-to-day operations.