News: online design retailer Fab.com has announced it will design its own range of furniture and homeware to be sold alongside its existing inventory.

The brand has also announced its expansion into France, the acquisition of a German furniture company and the opening of its first physical retail store.

In a blog post today, Fab founder and CEO Jason Goldberg revealed that the company, which originally launched in 2011 as a social network but switched focus last year to become a retail site for design, was once again "pivoting" its retail strategy as it looks to compete with global retailers like Amazon and Walmart.

"We won't rest until we've created the global brand that is synonymous with design for years and years to come," Goldberg wrote, adding that the relaunch was part of his plan to make Fab "the world's number one design store".

From today, the brand will add three exclusive product ranges to its offering: a line created in-house, called Products Designed by Fab; a specially selected line of products by other designers, named Products Found By Fab; and Designer Collaborations, which will see Fab developing products with other designers.

Goldberg also announced the launch of Fab's operations in France, a move that he says gives the brand coverage of 99% of the European Union, as well as the acquisition of MassivKonzept, a German startup specialising in customised furniture. MassivKonzept has been rebranded as Fab Designed By You, offering customers the chance to order made-to-measure shelves, tables and sofas in a variety of materials.

The company is also opening its first physical retail store in Hamburg, Germany, as well as expanding its mobile shopping experience with the new Fab iPad and iPhone apps.

In September last year, Fab closed its UK site and relocated staff from London to Berlin as part of a move to create a single European e-commerce site based in Germany. The company's UK operation launched two months earlier when it acquired Llustre.com, a design-led UK flash-sale site that had itself only launched three months earlier.