MR. LIVING

Mr. Living (居家先生) is a Taiwanese furniture company that operates on a direct-to-consumer, online-to-offline (O2O) business model, providing affordable Nordic design furniture. The company was founded in 2015 by Jerry Yang (楊大成), his brother Yang Da-Yue (楊大侑), and their childhood friends Lin Yu-Fan (林宇凡) and Lai Po-Yang (賴柏仰). The founding was driven by the observation that friends and family struggled with high furniture prices due to the multiple layers of costs from manufacturers, traders, and wholesalers. Jerry Yang, with his background as a sales representative for a traditional furniture wholesaler and experience in digital advertising, leveraged his knowledge to disrupt the industry.

Mr. Living's core strategy is to eliminate intermediaries by working directly with international manufacturers that produce for well-known global furniture brands. This “decentralization” approach allows the company to offer high-quality, originally designed furniture at prices significantly lower than the market average, often 30-50% cheaper. Initially, the company focused exclusively on selling sofas online through platforms like PCHome and Yahoo, quickly achieving significant sales and validating its business model. The business operates primarily on a pre-order basis, where products are manufactured after receiving customer orders, which minimizes inventory risk and maintains healthy cash flow. This model also allows for semi-customization, letting customers choose fabrics and leg materials for certain items like sofas.

After starting online, Mr. Living recognized the importance of physical experience for high-value items like furniture. In 2017, it opened its first appointment-only showroom in New Taipei City, and in 2018, its first official retail store in Taichung. The success of its physical stores, which generate high conversion rates, is supported by data analytics from its online operations to determine store locations and product displays. The company has since expanded its product lines to include furniture for the entire home—living room, dining room, study, and bedroom—to become a one-stop-shop for its customers. Mr. Living targets an audience of economically empowered women aged 30 to 45.

Keywords: Nordic design furniture, direct-to-consumer furniture, online furniture store, Taiwanese furniture brand, affordable luxury furniture, O2O commerce, home furnishings, interior design, e-commerce, modern furniture, Scandinavian design, sofas, home decor, semi-customizable furniture, Jerry Yang, pre-order furniture, furniture showroom, affordable design, home lifestyle brand, Taipei startup