Such a beautiful piece! Assembly was required. I'm a woman, I would say a little handy as I like to get involved in building and fixing things. The assembly took me about 3 hours. Instructions were clear but had to get used to at first since some of them are noted with stickers and some in the edge of the pieces. At the end, I loved this unit! It is simple and modern, eye catching and functional. Material looks durable, and the top piece looked real wood to me, while the others were pressed. Very heavy! You can't go wrong with it as it goes with every decoration.