In March the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) launched a biweekly survey of industry professionals to measure the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on design projects and business performance. Earlier today, the Washington, D.C.–based organization published its second COVID-19 Pulse Survey using data collected in a two-day period last week. Results show that respondents are leaning into the grief of what could very well be an economic depression.
Although respondents’ level of overall concern about the coronavirus has remained steadily high over the past two weeks, on a scale of one to five, approximately 70% scored their anxiety a four or five. Sixty-seven percent of interior designer respondents ranked new business development as their foremost concern, up from 59% in ASID’s first survey. That number jumped from 56% to 72% among the manufacturers and retailers who took part in the exercise. Underscoring that apprehensions had coalesced around revenue sources, 55% of interior designers surveyed said that projects were on hold or delayed due to COVID-19. Another 6% said they had no work whatsoever. Across the board, respondents seemed increasingly worried about paying rent.
In a similar vein, survey responses have turned bleaker regarding long-term economic resiliency. Asked how long it would take to return to pre-coronavirus business performance if the pandemic had ended in mid-April, only 22% selected “less than one month.” That is a 6% decrease since the close of March.
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Based on anecdotal answers submitted to the first survey, ASID inserted a new question in this second effort—to find out whether professionals are using their work-from-home experience to focus on different business activities. Not surprisingly, last week’s survey takers reported focusing on business-development tasks such as direct networking and marketing. The additional query also revealed the distinction that many small design studios are putting all efforts on temporary hold, whereas larger firms are attempting to offer new or different services. “Very few medium and large firms indicated putting all efforts on hold temporarily; the vast majority comes from self-employed or small firms,” Dr. Susan Chung, ASID’s director of research and knowledge management, comments to AD PRO via email. “Firms that are offering new and different services come from all firm sizes and includes manufacturers and retailers.”
Chung notes too that ASID will continue the COVID-19 Pulse Survey for several months after the economy reopens, and that it will analyze response trends cumulatively. “The Pulse Survey is ASID’s first step in providing in-depth research findings on how the pandemic has affected the design world,” she explains. Chung adds that the surveys will culminate in an overarching study, “which will track the industry and profession’s health from practitioners, firm leaders, retailers, and manufacturers during, shortly after, and a year after the pandemic to assess the resilience of the interior design community.” This resiliency study will be divided into separate reports dedicated to initial adaptations to economic disruption, the profession’s strength during recovery, and permanent industry change and new best practices. Even at this early stage of data collection, however, it is becoming apparent that the COVID-19 pandemic has been particularly brutal to small practices, and that large organizations are tapping their resources to find alternative ways of staying in business.
Besides providing a barometer of industry health, ASID is harnessing the COVID-19 Pulse Survey as part of its advocacy efforts. The online questionnaire asks takers to rank types of stimulus aid, to inform the ASID Government & Public Affairs Department’s next relief recommendations to Congress. Manufacturers and retailers wanted to suspend or decrease business taxes for this year, while designers emphasized easing the application process and broadening the application pool for aid. ASID’s next survey opens on April 28.
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