tain parts of the industry, the business had delivered a solid year, and that he expects FY23 to be more profitable. In order to improve profitability, Coulter said Temple and Webster will focus on margin optimisation throughout the next year, and will slow its investment into new areas – though the business has several key areas of investment it will continue to support. “Our north star is to be the largest furniture retailer in Australia, and our online-only peers around the world have already hit those kinds of milestones in their markets, so we know that it’s possible,” Coulter told Inside Retail.  “But with the macro conditions as they are right now, we think it’ll be more prudent to make sure that we’re growing profitably. We’re not doing anything crazy: we’ll work on private labels and our suppliers to get better terms, and we’ll look for tactical price increases we can make.” Customers buying bigger Many Australians are seeing the impact that slowed wage growth, compounded by rising interest rates and cost of living, is having on their day-to-day purchases – but Coulter noted that, at Temple and Webster, people are continuing to buy bigger ticket items.  “We’re still seeing a strong conversion rate, and actually, customers are buying things like sofas, beds and mattresses,” Coulter said.  “A lot of our categories are less ‘impulse buy’ than people think. You’re moving home, getting married, or having a child – life events happen regardless [of inflation]. “Definitely, people are feeling poorer, but they still need to buy these items, and they’re looking for better value. And our channel is naturally better value – we don’t have stores, so we don’t check ourselves against our offline peers.” Same market, different execution Though Temple and Webster remains focused on the furniture market, it’s finding new ways to expand into different parts of the market it wants to own.  Earlier this year, the business launched ‘The Build’: a pureplay channel dedicated to serving Australians who are renovating their homes, and need a place to research and shop online. “The initial launch has been really positive,” said Coulter. “It’s its own brand. It’s got its own design team, and its own category and market strategy. It’s like having a start-up within a young company, and it’s [growing] faster than Temple and Webster did.” The brand only launched in May, but Coulter already has his eye on ways to improve the site shortly. An enhanced range hitting more of the categories people need when renovating, a bigger focus on content, and improved shipping will all go a long way, Coulter said. “When you’re redoing the plumbing, you need the bath and sink to be there before the plumber gets there, whereas a lounge delivery isn’t as time-sensitive,” Coulter said.  The other market that Temple and Webster is pushing further into is B2B furniture. Currently, the business’ B2B arm makes up about 8 per cent of Temple and Webster’s sales, but Coulter sees it hitting somewhere closer to 20 per cent with time and investment. “If you think of B2C furniture, a lot of brands spring to mind. But when you think of B2B, there are not as many names,” Coulter said. “That indicates that it’s very fragmented, it’s very specialised, and you’ve got wholesalers or B2B businesses focusing on particular categories in specific geographies. “The opportunity to have a national brand, across many categories, as an appropriate B2B service… We think there is definitely opportunity.”