By Style Reporter
With schools and nursery centres closed indefinitely and the national lockdown extended with an additional two weeks, parents have no choice, but to turn their homes into realms of fantasy to kill that boredom brought by idleness.
This could be daunting on the part of parents, but children still need to play, be active and connect in some way with others.
There is an old adage that “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”, which means there is need for children to have time for recreation to revitalise their minds’ inborn abilities.
Local furniture manufacturing company Furniture Direct International (FDI) has taken upon itself to bring that aesthetic feel in children’s rooms.
For the past four years, the Harare-based company has been involved in furniture, specialising in creative beds and desks for kids’ bedrooms, as well as tables and chairs for playrooms.
“We are not new to this kids’ furniture business, but we are now widening our concept, venturing into this untapped kids furniture market,” said FDI founder and director Jacob Esau.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
“To us the national lockdown has brought about opportunities and we have expanded our business to create playroom designs.”
FDI have at their showroom furniture for kids of all ages, playroom essentials, including creative beds and storage pieces that suit any home design.
“Our idea is to make parenting more exciting by coming up with these designs that are so interactive to the kids. Children learn more from the environment and a creative bedroom or playroom is the proper way to keep the mind of the child in trim shape,” Esau said.
“We are seeing beyond kids’ furniture, as we want to explore into other areas that makes modern parenting more exciting.
“We are looking at coming up with an online TV channel that solely caters for the children. This is in line with our vision of keeping kids entertained in their homes.”
Esau said FDI was mulling over opening all things kids shops across the country.
“This concept is not popular in Zimbabwe and in most African countries. We are working on opening shops that are exclusively kids furniture,” he said.
“We want to come up with customised making of kids furniture and we want our customers to bring their own designs.”
However, Esau said most Zimbabweans were yet to embrace the idea of furnishing their kids’ rooms.
“Parents do not understand the importance of having creative spaces for their little ones, but we have noted some kind of improvement lately through our engagements on social media,” Esau said.
The young businessman said some parents were now noticing the importance of having interactive playrooms and bedrooms.
“During this time of lockdown and Covid-19 quarantine, families saw the importance of having creative spaces for children in their homes. Playing outside can be laborious, hence the need to have these interactive rooms,” he said.
