UdZ 01.21

UdZ 1-2021 / 80 INEDIT: Enabling Multidimensional Collaboration Through Innovative Business Models Concept for an International Co-creation Platform in the Furniture Sector Nowadays, in the furniture industry, low-cost furniture is largely mass-produced. The products are typically short-lived and made of low-quality materials. Strong competition is driving smaller companies out of business, and aspects of environmental sustainability increasingly take a back seat. Customers who are looking for more individualized pieces of furniture are often confronted with long delivery times, high prices, and low customer involvement. Against this backdrop, the EU project ‘INEDIT’ is pursuing the goal of developing a platform on which custom-made and sustainable pieces of furniture can be produced and traded at a fair price. Following the “Do-It-Together” approach, a business ecosystem is created that adds value not only for customers but also for designers, suppliers, and manufacturing companies. This new type of collaboration and the diversity of possible forms of cooperation can no longer be implemented with traditional, one-dimensional business models. Instead, the various business model concepts are to be integrated into a single approach. The platform helps to build powerful collaborative value networks that lead to high customer satisfaction.