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Mass Customization Comes to the HomeThursday, September 17. 2009 UK-based company Rug Couture launched their new website in August 2009, allowing clients to customize the rug of their choice quickly and easily online. The interface itself is nicely set up and easy to use. Your first step is to choose the style — abstract, animal print, circles, figurative, flags, graphic, stripes, and more. Then choose your specific design. Next, “paint” your rug by first selecting from a wide array of colours, then clicking on an area of the rug to colour it. One problem with this step is that some of the colours didn’t work on one of the designs, which led me to believe that those colours were incompatible with that design. However, when I went back later to try it again, it worked! Once you’re happy with your design and colours, you specify the size you want, which will automatically generate pricing. My rug, at 175cm x 250cm, would cost £578.59 for tufted quality, £764.75 for hand-tufted, or £1,127.00 for hand-knotted quality (all rugs are made with pure New Zealand Wool). Want to know how that translates in to Canadian funds? Just to put that in perspective, that’s $1,036.70 CDN for the least expensive one! This seems excessive to me for a rug, but maybe the unique factor is worth paying top dollar for.
You can go back at any time and change your design, or save what you’ve done to your Wishlist (for which you need to create a free account). Although Rug Couture is based in the UK, they deliver worldwide (takes 3-6 weeks, depending on quality), with free shipping on orders over £100/$150. Adding the idea of custom rugs to that of custom fabrics (that I've written about before), you could actually envision a whole room decorated entirely with your own designs! You could upholster your couch to match one of the colours in your rug, or have throw pillows with the same design! With more and more customization options out there, the sky is quickly becoming the limit when it comes to expressing your creativity! 
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Great example of home decor customization. The price seems high but the buyer that wants their own design is willing to pay a premium! My mom is a Rug Hooker and sometimes produces custom pieces for friends. Same idea - longer turnaround time.
Thanks Anita
I certainly agree with you. For all of the mass customized products that I've written about, there is a "customization premium". It's not for everyone, but for those consumers who seek something "one of a kind", it's definitely worth the extra cost.
Thanks for your comment, Tim! Anita |
About the author
Anita Windisman As Founder and President of One of a Kind Publishing Inc., Anita Windisman has over 18 years of experience in the area of sales and marketing, with the last 13 being Internet related. While she started her online career in advertising, she has extensive expertise in eBusiness strategy development, web marketing and content delivery, having worked with many large corporations such as Levi Strauss, Toronto Hydro, and Royal LePage and Worldcolor (formerly known as Quebecor World). About this blogI write on the topics of mass customization, personalization, and personalized marketing in the form of print, video and other applications.
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