At ModulR our biggest goal is to enhance people’s experience during their study. By removing and reducing the hassle to prepare for a stay abroad. Offering that to one generation of students is great, but we believe our planet to be precious and the furniture industry to be destructive to it. We want to make sure upcoming generations of students can also engage in these life-changing experiences abroad and strive to create our furniture in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way.
Sustainability is key to preserving our planet, and it’s a core value for our company. We believe that furniture cannot only enhance your home environment but also contribute positively to our environment. Our products are designed and manufactured with environmental responsibility and consideration for the planet. To ensure having minimal environmental impact, ModulR orientates on the following aspects:
- Material Choice
By using plywood with a synthetic resin cover, we use a sturdy material that won’t be damaged easily and can be re-used multiple times. - Manufacturing
The product is manufactured in Latvia because of multiple reasons. Sustainable energy production, a tactical placement which leads to reduced CO-2 emission, an advanced infrastructure, knowledgeable personnel and the strict adhering to global norms, Latvia has tons of benefits when designing sustainably. - Transparency and Certifications
We support accountability and transparency. We are open about the components of our furniture and how they affect the environment. - Efficient Delivery
Optimized delivery routes to shorten travel distance and reduce fuel consumption. Additionally, our company uses a flat-packing concept which allows us to use truck space effectively and therefore to deliver more products. - Returns:
In the event that our product receives permanent damage, our company provides a repair included in the terms of the subscription which extends the lifetime of the product.
€ 2.000.000
Needed in funding
We are working around the clock to provide students with unforgettable experiences. But we need your help! With 2 million euros we can reach 3.000 foreign students in our five year start-up period. A large share of your funds would go towards manufacturing the components, as making durable furniture is very expensive. The remainder of your investment would, among others, go towards our employee’s payroll and R&D.
In exchange for your long term investment in the ModulR company, we will provide you with 28% equity stake in the company. These shares will start to rapidly gain value after the our five year start-up period, due to our unique look on reusing components. Invest in us, and in a market worth €35 billion euros.
We want to fill a gap, combining a market for rental furniture, and one for space-saving furniture. These markets both have their own target customer: Renting is often seen as a practice where you always lose money. Therefore, the people renting are generally rich or do not have another option, as they cannot sell their furniture after they move out of their rental space again. Space-saving furniture is used in rooms with little space, also seen at consumers with little money.
Our space-saving furniture rental would cater to a combination of these target groups. In general, our products accommodate a consumer living and renting a small living space in a foreign county for a limited amount of time and has little excess money to spend.
Our products will mostly attract foreign students living and studying in the Netherlands for their full study or as an exchange student for half-a-year, as these consumers make up a large share of the group living in a foreign country temporarily. These students have more disposable income than the average student and can therefore afford a more expensive living space and furniture arrangement. However, their disposable income is not up to par with the average income as they are working and studying at the same time. These people have a busy lifestyle and need versatile products that can be disposed of before moving abroad again. Their study and leisure time is closely attached, leaving little time where they reside in their living space.
As our target group is living in the country temporarily and they would like to move back to their home country after their study, buying products that must be disposed of is a trouble. The hassle of purchasing, maintaining, and selling products is exceptionally large for foreign (exchange) students. Our furniture system takes away this hassle by providing them the furniture they need for the time they need it.
To target the appropriate consumer market, three mediums of advertisement would be relevant:
- Targeted online advertising aimed at the user group
- Cooperation with Universities to inform students about this opportunity
- Cooperation with housing associations to provide ModulR solutions to tenants
To capture a part of the market, it is important to understand where we position ourselves among the competition. For example, Ikea focuses a lot on being cheap and being able to pick exactly what you like, but you have to assemble everything yourself. There are also companies that rent out furniture sets, such as move & rent, but often those companies only offer specific packages for furniture. This makes them easily accessible, but not very personal. By hiring a carpenter you can make the most personalized furniture imaginable, but it also comes at a high price.
ModulR aims to be the overlap between all the good factors in that, by striking a balance of being easy, cheap and personal.
One of the goals of ModulR is to maximize product lifespan by using end of life principles to integrate the product into a circular economy. This way, ModulR cuts cost and minimizes environmental impact.
High quality birch plywood with a hard resin outer laminate is used for it’s robust qualities, extending the lifetime of the product, and there bye minimizing cost and environmental impact.
To further minimize cost and environmental impact, ModulR is integrated into a circular economy in other ways.
Mechanical components are sourced from partners known for quality, to ensure their optimal lifespan.
ModulR aims to fulfill a wide range of functional and aesthetic requirement of students. Because of this, there is a wide variety of customer demands in terms of module types (closet, shelf, drawer, coffee table) and colors.
To satisfy this wide range of demanded aesthetics and functionality while minimizing unused components that would waste money and material, the many modules largely consist of the same parts, (see 32mm system).
After Modulr components have been collected from the consumer (at the end of the customer’s subscription, or during a reparation/maintenance visit) parts are evaluated for aesthetic and structural damage.
If structurally damaged, ModulR’s carpenters try to repurpose the structurally functional section to a smaller part by cutting away the damage. If beyond repair, the part is recycled with a third party.
If the component is only aesthetically damaged (scratches, cuffs), the component’s designation in the module is changed.
For example, a scratched outer panel of a closet can (due to the intra-and intermodular nature of ModulR’s wooden components) be moved to a more visually discrete placement such as structural support, or the side of a module facing a wall.
Due to the nature of ModulR’s design, the required volume of components in transport or storage is minimized. This decreases the economic and environment resources spent storing unused ModulR components and transporting them to and from the customer.
Future plans
For the future of the company, there are many plans that we would like to work on in the future. These do not have priority for the start of the company, but allow for expansion once the company has stable cashflow. These can be broadly divided into alterations to the user experience, and alterations to the company strategy.
For the company strategy, expansion outside of Enschede would be one of the first priorities. Other student cities in the Netherlands would be relatively easy, as the warehouse and office already in place could simply be expanded upon.
Besides this, more types of subscription plans can be added. Currently this is limited to only regular and exchange, but we are also considering to implement subscription plans that provide services of an interior designer, or cheaper plans that come with less of the regular services.
Design
To add to the amount of options, one of the main plans is to add a lot more modules, while trying to re-use as many assets as possible. Accompanying this, the options for accessories are also something to be expanded upon. Along with this, we want to create more of an establishment as a brand.
To further engage ModulR’s customer base, plans are being made to establish a greater interactions with users, to potentially increase user engagement and emotional attachment to the brand, while expanding ModulR’s social media presence at a relatively small cost. For the design planner, we are looking into the options for an app that lets you view your design in 3D by use of AR, so you get a better feel for how big your set will actually be. In addition to this, we want to work on a platform to share designs with other users. Such a platform also allows users to create new designs and partake in competitions. This could create a whole community around ModulR furniture sets!
