The interior design market in Romania continues its evolution at an accelerated pace, being characterized by two major trends: the increasing interest in the design of commercial spaces and offices and the increased demand for the design of spacious houses and apartments, CR-Design specialists show, one of the most active interior design studios in Romania. Thus, the interior design market reaches a new threshold of maturity, being allocated larger budgets, between 400 euros/sq m and 700 euros/sq m for the design of commercial or residential spaces.
The commercial segment, the engine of the interior design market
"The interior design market is going through a revival process, especially due to the commercial segment, where more and more companies and more and more entrepreneurs choose to arrange workspaces, regardless of their size. For example, last year, we had a pleasant surprise from medical, dental, and even family medical offices. We are very happy that the doctors in the state structure want, in addition to making the spaces more efficient, to offer patients a pleasant and welcoming environment. We see that this trend will continue in 2024, especially in the fields of retail, medical, HoReCa, tourism and beauty, but also in the area of companies that want to arrange offices to create a more pleasant working environment for employees", says Camelia Radu, founder and interior designer CR-Design.
The high demand for commercial and office fit-out occurs as a result of increased competition in each field and thus the desire for differentiation among businesses in the same industry. To this is naturally added the need for customer and employee loyalty. Thus, the demand for interior design services in the commercial segment increased by 23% last year compared to 2022, and for 2024 CR-Design estimates that this segment will represent 30%-35% of all interior design projects.
More and more interior design also in small towns and in the countryside
Most requests for the development of commercial spaces come from Bucharest and other large cities, and lately there has been an increased interest from smaller cities, such as Târgu-Jiu or Câmpina, but also in the countryside. Recently, CR-Design set up a medical office in a modern and welcoming style in a commune of 12,800 inhabitants in Arad county. Also, interest in projects in rural areas near cities is growing, especially for dental offices, medical offices, beauty salons, showrooms, restaurants, guesthouses and holiday homes.
In the office segment, there is an increasing number of requests from SME companies in various fields, including companies with a few employees, who want to create a harmonious workspace as part of their recruitment and employee retention strategy, in competition with big companies.
In the commercial and office segment, modern and industrial styles are preferred that convey the idea of a relaxing and welcoming space, and budgets vary from 15,000 euros to hundreds of thousands of euros, in the case of showrooms most of the time, depending on the furnished surface, but also the type of space.
"Romania is going through a process of improving, beautifying, and harmonizing life, regardless of whether we are talking about business or your own home. The way customers or employees feel in the space where they enter and stay perhaps for hours has become a priority for Romanian entrepreneurs. The focus is increasingly on how people feel regardless of where they are, which supports the growth of the interior design market. Moreover, Romanians, entrepreneurs or individuals, have understood and appreciate more and more the role that an interior designer has, how he helps them in the entire furnishing process from rendering to the selection of products to the last detail of the harmoniously arranged space and how much they can save, in many cases up to 20%, just by calling an experienced specialist", says Camelia Radu, founder and interior designer of CR-Design.
The residential segment, growing on large houses
At the same time, the residential segment continues to have an important contribution to the interior design market. Interest in the design of spacious houses and apartments remains high, especially in the main cities, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca and Timișoara, but also in the countryside near the big cities, where holiday homes are built.
"On the residential side, there is a fairly large balance between the demand for fittings for houses, apartments, or studios. The allocated budget differs, so implicitly the style chosen in the design, the materials used, and the complexity of their combination. In the first place is the arrangement of houses or larger homes, because that is where the role of the interior designer comes into play: finding the balance between the ground floor and the first floor, between the bedroom and the bathrooms, which colors we choose for the child's room to make him like it for a longer time. In the design of larger houses it is even more difficult to manage the budget if you do not know exactly what result you are aiming for because if you are not used to the products or suppliers, it will be quite difficult to choose balanced and coherently combine the details in such a way that the layout should be cursive, but not without personality. This is also the reason why arrangements without the involvement of an interior designer are mostly monochrome, without bolder details and accessories, the risk of making a mistake is quite high", adds Camelia Radu, founder and interior designer of CR-Design.
Romanians are turning to interior designers in increasing numbers to avoid considerable losses of money, as well as to avoid a disastrous outcome. A harmonious space has several components: utility, sufficient spaces for maneuvering, generous colors to pass through, resistant materials depending on the space used, upholstered chests of drawers, assorted colors depending on the personality of the one who lives in the respective spaces, including strategically positioned lighting fixtures and with the appropriate light intensity. Or if something is missing from all this necessary mix, the space can become disturbing, uncomfortable, or even annoying, and then the investment ends up seeming unjustified.
In terms of furnishing trends, in 2024 imposing objects are present, curved lines in both furniture and accessories, but also natural materials: wood, stone, wicker, and dried floral arrangements. When it comes to colors, although according to Pantone the color of the year is Peach Fuzz, most likely this shade will not be found in furnishing but rather in fashion, in furnishing still using colors that represent the space, the owners, or the business.
About CR-Design
Founded in 2016, CR-Design Studio has become one of the recognized interior design firms in the commercial and residential segments in Romania. With a solid team of interior design specialists, CR-Design has had over 100 interior design projects from the most diverse commercial spaces to homes with challenging requirements, to create a harmonious and captivating space. In recent years, with the development of projects in the residential area, CR-Design has expanded its portfolio with business clients from the fields of HoReCa, retail, tourism, medical, and beauty both in urban and rural areas.
