Italy’s couples argue over flatpacks, Switzerland’s keep a cool head
One in five people in Europe say they’ve fought with their partner while assembling furniture. Couples in Italy rank as the most likely to quarrel over a flatpack, while Switzerland’s couples manage to keep a cool head. That’s according to a representative Galaxus survey carried out by YouGov.
It’s Saturday morning. Prime time for building flat-pack furniture. The floor is littered with 47 components, an Allen wrench and a manual you’d need an engineering degree to understand. Eventually, someone says, «You’re holding it wrong.» What happens next? To find out, Galaxus has commissioned market research company YouGov to poll 5,226 people in five European countries.
Arguments most likely to break out in Italy
Just over 20 per cent of people in Europe say they’ve experienced this classic moment in coupledom: getting into an argument while assembling furniture. That said, the figure varies considerably between countries. In Italy, 34 per cent of respondents stated they’d argued over a flatpack with their significant other, compared with 22 per cent in Germany and 21 per cent in Austria. Polling at 19 per cent, France falls slightly below the European average. Switzerland comes out as the most peaceful country in the ranking, with only 14 per cent reporting they’d fought with their partner while building furniture.
However, Switzerland does seem to be swallowing its anger. Thirty per cent of respondents in the country said they’d experienced «tension» with their partner over furniture assembly, falling short of getting into a full-blown argument. In Italy, where couples reported fighting more openly, that figure stands at just nine per cent.
Many people enjoy building furniture
Despite the potential for conflict, most people actually enjoy assembling furniture. Respondents in Italy were most likely to attest to this (58 per cent), with Switzerland in second place (53 per cent) and Germany bringing up the rear (41 per cent). Respondents based in Switzerland were also most likely to feel fairly indifferent about building furniture.
There’s also a gender divide when it comes to build-it-yourself furniture. Women are less likely to reach for their toolboxes than men, with 19 per cent of female respondents stating they never assembled furniture themselves. Seven per cent of men reported the same. At the same time, many men report assembling sofas, bookcases or cots themselves just to get it over and done with.
The fun of building furniture apparently wanes with age – perhaps because of the toll it takes on the back. That might be why people aged 45 and over are more likely to delegate the task. However, the growing affluence that comes with age likely plays a part in this too.
Half of respondents have built furniture incorrectly
Mistakes are part and parcel of assembling furniture. In fact, half of all survey respondents said they’d put together a flatpack incorrectly at least once. A quarter said their furniture turned out to be wobbly, while a third said they broke something during the assembly process. Fifteen per cent of respondents stated they’d damaged something else, such as the floor or a wall, while building furniture. Thirteen per cent reported ignoring the instructions and regretting it later. As many as 12 per cent of respondents said they’d injured themselves while assembling furniture, clearly still scarred by that hammer blow they took to the thumb.
YouTube videos over professional help
When people get stuck during the furniture-building process, they’re most likely to ask their partner for help (37 per cent). Video tutorials are the second most likely form of assistance (31 per cent), with friends or neighbours coming in close behind (30 per cent). Only nine per cent ask a professional for help after taking the furniture out of its packaging. Seven per cent of people are now turning to AI to get help with building furniture. A quarter of respondents said they didn’t ask anyone for help.
France prefers the DIY approach
In France, three quarters of respondents said they’d never paid a professional to assemble furniture for them. This might be down to cultural reasons – «bricolage» or «tinkering» is a popular national pastime in France. More than half of the population describe DIY as a hobby (link in French), with three quarters of the country calling it «a source of enjoyment». In Switzerland and Germany, half of respondents stated they’d never used an installation service, with the figure dropping to 45 per cent in Italy. In Austria, 60 per cent of respondents said they’d paid a professional to assemble furniture for them at least once.
All in all, Europe sees furniture-building as a team effort with potential for conflict. Whether you’re arguing in Palermo, fizzing with silent resentment in Zurich or stoically cracking on with the DIY in Paris, you’ll pretty much always end up with a finished bookcase. Maybe even a stable one at that.
At Digitec and Galaxus, I’m in charge of communication with journalists and bloggers. Good stories are my passion – I am always up to date.
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