You are being provided with a book chapter by chapter. I will request you to read the book for me after each chapter. After reading the chapter, 1. shorten the chapter to no less than 300 words and no more than 400 words. 2. Do not change the name, address, or any important nouns in the chapter. 3. Do not translate the original language. 4. Keep the same style as the original chapter, keep it consistent throughout the chapter. Your reply must comply with all four requirements, or it’s invalid.
I will provide the chapter now.

FURNITURE FACTS
 
 
       American company Steelcase was the leading furniture manufacturer
in the world in 2020. The company has approximately 80 locations
and 11,000 employees worldwide. Steelcase primarily makes office
furniture.
 
            The bean bag chair was invented in 1968 by Italian designers Piero
Gatti,  Cesare Paolini,  and  Franco Teodoro. Its popularity peaked in
the late 1970s.
 
            It’s believed the earliest furniture was constructed in the Mesolithic
Period (20,000-8,000 years ago) or the early Neolithic Period (ca.
120,000-4,500 years ago). They were made from wood, stone, and
animal bones.
 
            Thomas Chippendale  (1718–1779) was a cabinet maker who
combined furniture styles of his era to create a new style known as
“Chippendale.” He also designed the homes of the British elite. 
 
            American company Ashley HomeStore is the top retail furniture
store in sales in the US. Close at number two is Swedish founded,
Dutch headquartered, IKEA.
 
            In 2020, China was the world’s leading exporter of furniture, with
$69 billion worth. Poland was second with nearly $13 billion worth of
furniture exports.
 
            Although the Romans didn’t invent the sofa, they knew how to use
them! Roman patricians enjoyed lounging on sofas while they
entertained guests, who would also have had sofas to lounge on.
 
            American tycoon, Warren Buffett, got into the furniture business in
1983 when his Berkshire Hathaway bought Nebraska Furniture Mart
for $60 million. Berkshire later bought other furniture chains.
 
       Early bookshelves held papyrus scrolls, so they looked a bit different.
It wasn’t until after the Guttenberg Press was invented in the 1430s
that books as we know them were created, requiring a true bookshelf.
 
       Staying true to their Swedish roots, IKEA also sells meatballs. IKEA
sells about 150 million meatballs every year.
 
            The ancient Egyptians didn’t use pillows. The Egyptians used
headrests, which all but ensured that a person would have to sleep on
their back.
 
            The average sofa gets 2,958 days of use, or just over eight years
before it gets sent to the curb.
 
       The futon was developed in Japan. Traditionally, Japanese futons are
placed on top of a matting called tatami.
 
       Mayflower Transit, better known in the US as “Mayflower Moving,”
was founded by Conrad M. Gentry and Don F. Kenworthy in
Indianapolis, Indiana in 1927. The company is an agent-owned
cooperative.
 
       The finest Egyptian furniture was made from ebony. Since ebony had
to be imported from the African interior, it was more valuable.
 
       The “Badminton Cabinet” twice set the record for the most expensive
piece of furniture ever sold. Built in 1726 for the 3rd Duke of
Beaufort, the Cabinet was last sold by Christie’s in 2004 for £19
million (approx.) $36.7 million.
 
            Although some believe a young Benjamin Franklin made the first
rocking chair, its inventor will probably never be known. First
designed in America, rocking chairs began being sold in England in
1725.
 
            When North American plains Indians needed to move, they packed
up their belongings on a framed structure called a travois. A travois
could be attached to a horse, dog, or human and then dragged, as it
had no wheels.
 
            Allied Van Lines is the oldest moving company in the US. It was
founded in 1928, just before Mayflower began service.
 
            IKEA claims that its “Billy” bookcase is the most commercially
successful piece of furniture. More than 110 million Billy cases have
been sold in the last 40 years.
 
            The modern word “table” is derived from the ancient Latin word
tabula. A Roman tabula could be any flat piece of board and didn’t
have to have four legs.
 
            As Charles Darwin (1809-1882) developed his theory of evolution,
he also invented the modern office chair by adding wheels to make a