Before the steep fall of the naira, COVID-19, lockdown and suspension of air flights to some destinations combined together to put a wedge in the door, upper and middle class Nigerian families always went to Dubai and Turkey to get quality and fashionable furniture for their homes and for their children about to get married. Apart from the steep costs and travel difficulties, some of the imported furniture got damaged in transit.
Now, help has arrived at Nigerian doorsteps. The Turkish furniture company Baffi Furniture, which arrived in Nigeria five years ago, has already found a ready niche in many Nigerian homes and offices which once went sourcing for furniture abroad. The rapidly expanding Baffi Furniture, which started with a small staff of 5 and a small showroom in 2016, now has 6 showrooms in Nigeria, four of them in Abuja and two in Kano. It also has a large, well equipped and state of the art furniture factory in Abuja’s Idu industrial estate.
Baffi’s showrooms are a trip to another world in furniture. Its managing director Bahtiyar Nalbant said, “There is something here for everyone,” from Royal and modern sofa sets, dining sets, bed sets and other home furniture, kitchen cabinets, home and office furniture. To boot, they are of high quality, the price is affordable, delivery time is quick because of the nearby factory, after-sales service is fast and efficient, home installation is available, interior décor advice is offered free, and there is a two year guarantee on the furniture.
Some of Baffi’s big customers already include Kano State government, Dantata Group, Sheraton Hotel and the newly opened Tropic Galleria mall in Abuja.
I stumbled into one of the showrooms at Shoprite on Airport Road, Lugbe, Abuja, while helping a friend to shop for furniture for an upcoming wedding. Modern sofa of various grades, dining sets, TV stands, beds of various sizes and grades of elegance, royal sets, centre and side stools, outdoor chairs, beds for babies and the most elegant Atlas, Rover, Fendi and Velar complete sofa sets and dining sets were all on show. While some costs a few hundred thousand naira, some of the most imposing sets went for up to five million.
Not only that. For a company that debuted in Nigeria only five years ago, Mr. spoke of Baffi Furniture’s charity projects, which include donating furniture sets such as sofa and beds to indigent newly-weds. Baffi also annually hands out wedding gifts as well as packages during Ramadan, Sallah and Christmas. It has also built water wells in some places, with plans to continually expand on its charity projects.
As the old saying goes, a trip to Baffi showrooms will convince you.
