In social media communities frequented by college-bound teens and young adults, dorm room décor is experiencing something of a golden age. Influencers and designers have been highlighting ideas for small spaces like dorm rooms and first apartments, students themselves have been gaining social media fame for sharing their creative college living spaces—sometimes put together at great expense—and students of all kinds are turning to social media for ideas on how to assemble small-space environments that are cozy and welcoming and express their individuality.
Retailers have noticed, adding more products and focusing on on-trend, often vintage-inspired looks, with collaborative collections part of the mix in many cases. Here are some of their initiatives for the 2023 back-to-college season:
- The Container Store partnered with online dorm décor brand Dormify for a co-branded in-store College Shop in 40 of its locations, featuring organization products from the former along with bedding and other home goods from the latter. Five of the locations include a full shop-in-shop, while the other 35 feature a display to allow customers to experience the products in person before buying online. All told, the joint collection includes 90 items.
- Pottery Barn Teen is offering its largest dorm room assortment ever this year, with dorm bedding, storage, bath goods, and décor offered in-store and at a dedicated PBTeen Dorm page online. The collection includes items from the retailer’s collaborative collection of floral, vintage-inspired bedding and décor with the fashion brand LoveShackFancy, announced in January. Customers can have their order shipped to the Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Pottery Barn Teen, or West Elm store closest to their college campus.
- JCPenney has been expanding its dorm range in recent years, featuring products from its two-year-old Home Expressions and one-year-old Distant Lands private labels, among other brands, and adding items from its new storage category this year. This summer, it expanded its Forever 21 collection, initially focused on clothing, into a 55-piece home collection that includes dorm-room décor like bedding, bath rugs, pillows, shower caddies, and more.
- Urban Outfitters collaborated with actress, film student, and influencer Iris Apatow to promote its new Small Spaces collection of home goods meant for dorms and first apartments. Apatow used the collection for a retro-style makeover of her apartment and shared it on YouTube as part of the UO Home Tours series. Licensed products such as a Paul Frank kitchen counter stool can be spotted among her new décor. Consumers are able to shop the products Apatow selected in dedicated displays in store and online for a limited time through July and August.
Back-to-college is a perennially important sales window, of course. But, as these examples show, many retailers have been been elevating their dorm-room game in recent years, catering to students who are going all out to create a stylish space to spend their college careers—not to mention share the results with their social media followers—as well as students who just want to create a decent place to live for the next four years.
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